Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) Holdings Lifted by Van ECK Associates Corp

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its holdings in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC - Free Report) by 8,671.5% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 113,152 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 111,862 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp's holdings in Yum China were worth $5,450,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Waverton Investment Management Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of Yum China by 350.7% during the third quarter. Waverton Investment Management Ltd now owns 4,203,087 shares of the company's stock valued at $189,202,000 after acquiring an additional 3,270,560 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC acquired a new position in Yum China during the 3rd quarter valued at about $2,177,000. GSA Capital Partners LLP grew its position in Yum China by 100.2% in the 3rd quarter. GSA Capital Partners LLP now owns 35,760 shares of the company's stock worth $1,610,000 after purchasing an additional 17,898 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans grew its position in Yum China by 21.3% in the 3rd quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 2,510,386 shares of the company's stock worth $113,017,000 after purchasing an additional 441,252 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Merit Financial Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $322,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company's stock.

Yum China Price Performance

Shares of NYSE:YUMC traded down $0.66 during trading on Friday, reaching $46.62. The company had a trading volume of 2,665,837 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,450,283. The firm's fifty day moving average is $46.78 and its 200 day moving average is $43.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.29. The firm has a market capitalization of $17.71 billion, a PE ratio of 20.01, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.33. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a twelve month low of $28.50 and a twelve month high of $52.00.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). Yum China had a return on equity of 13.83% and a net margin of 8.06%. On average, equities analysts forecast that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.06%. This is a boost from Yum China's previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Yum China's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 27.47%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on YUMC shares. StockNews.com upgraded Yum China from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Monday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Yum China from a "neutral" rating to an "overweight" rating and increased their price target for the stock from $35.50 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Four investment analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Buy" and an average price target of $49.57.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Duoduo (Howard) Huang sold 6,377 shares of Yum China stock in a transaction on Monday, November 25th. The stock was sold at an average price of $47.47, for a total value of $302,716.19. Following the transaction, the insider now directly owns 16,641 shares in the company, valued at $789,948.27. The trade was a 27.70 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the company's stock in a transaction on Monday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total value of $188,019.00. Following the sale, the insider now directly owns 56,602 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This represents a 6.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. 0.30% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc owns, operates, and franchises restaurants in the People's Republic of China. The company operates through KFC, Pizza Hut, and All Other segments. It operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, Lavazza, Little Sheep, and Huang Ji Huang concepts. The company also operates V-Gold Mall, a mobile e-commerce platform to sell products; and offers online food deliver services.