Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) Upgraded at StockNews.com

StockNews.com upgraded shares of Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) from a hold rating to a buy rating in a research note issued to investors on Friday.

Several other analysts have also commented on YUMC. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised shares of Yum China from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and increased their target price for the company from $35.50 to $60.00 in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. Macquarie raised Yum China from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $30.00 to $37.40 in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Finally, Citigroup raised Yum China to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Monday, September 30th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average target price of $51.68.

Yum China Stock Down 0.0 %

Shares of YUMC stock opened at $47.21 on Friday. Yum China has a 1 year low of $28.50 and a 1 year high of $52.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.29. The business’s fifty day moving average is $43.61 and its 200-day moving average is $37.14. The stock has a market cap of $17.93 billion, a PE ratio of 20.89, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.69 and a beta of 0.36.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last released its earnings results on Monday, November 4th. The company reported $0.77 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.68 by $0.09. Yum China had a return on equity of 13.39% and a net margin of 7.97%. The firm had revenue of $3.07 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.03 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $0.59 earnings per share. Yum China’s revenue was up 5.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities analysts expect that Yum China will post 2.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 17th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, November 26th will be paid a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.36%. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, November 26th. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 28.32%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Yum China

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Sei Investments Co. lifted its position in shares of Yum China by 16.0% in the first quarter. Sei Investments Co. now owns 266,021 shares of the company’s stock worth $10,585,000 after purchasing an additional 36,660 shares in the last quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. grew its holdings in shares of Yum China by 17.5% during the 1st quarter. Mitsubishi UFJ Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 262,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,459,000 after acquiring an additional 39,231 shares in the last quarter. Banco Santander S.A. increased its stake in shares of Yum China by 13.4% in the first quarter. Banco Santander S.A. now owns 36,638 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,458,000 after acquiring an additional 4,328 shares during the last quarter. M&G Plc purchased a new stake in shares of Yum China during the first quarter worth $425,000. Finally, TIAA Trust National Association boosted its position in Yum China by 26.0% during the first quarter. TIAA Trust National Association now owns 6,413 shares of the company’s stock valued at $255,000 after purchasing an additional 1,322 shares during the last quarter. 85.58% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.