Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) Shares Sold by Lipe & Dalton

Lipe & Dalton lessened its position in shares of Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE:YUM) by 1.0% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,212 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock after selling 290 shares during the period. Yum! Brands comprises 2.1% of Lipe & Dalton’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 14th biggest holding. Lipe & Dalton’s holdings in Yum! Brands were worth $3,919,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Safe Harbor Fiduciary LLC acquired a new position in Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $29,000. Jackson Grant Investment Advisers Inc. lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 52.1% during the 4th quarter. Jackson Grant Investment Advisers Inc. now owns 295 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $40,000 after buying an additional 101 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc purchased a new stake in shares of Yum! Brands during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $42,000. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 649.0% during the 4th quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 367 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $49,000 after buying an additional 318 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Albion Financial Group UT lifted its position in shares of Yum! Brands by 24.7% during the 4th quarter. Albion Financial Group UT now owns 566 shares of the restaurant operator’s stock worth $76,000 after buying an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 82.37% of the company’s stock.

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum! Brands

In related news, CEO David W. Gibbs sold 3,815 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, December 16th. The stock was sold at an average price of $137.06, for a total transaction of $522,883.90. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 149,385 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $20,474,708.10. This trade represents a 2.49 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which can be accessed through this link. Corporate insiders own 0.31% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

YUM has been the subject of several research reports. Citigroup reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $141.00 price target (down previously from $153.00) on shares of Yum! Brands in a research report on Friday, January 10th. UBS Group upped their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $156.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Argus upgraded shares of Yum! Brands from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $155.00 price objective for the company in a research report on Tuesday, December 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group upped their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $140.00 to $155.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Yum! Brands from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Thirteen investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $147.37.

Yum! Brands Price Performance

NYSE YUM opened at $148.51 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $41.45 billion, a PE ratio of 28.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.31 and a beta of 1.10. Yum! Brands, Inc. has a one year low of $122.13 and a one year high of $151.29. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $134.35 and its 200 day simple moving average is $135.04.

Yum! Brands Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 7th. Shareholders of record on Friday, February 21st will be given a $0.71 dividend. This represents a $2.84 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.91%. This is a positive change from Yum! Brands’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.67. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, February 21st. Yum! Brands’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 51.34%.

About Yum! Brands

Yum! Brands, Inc, together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick service restaurants worldwide. The company operates through the KFC Division, the Taco Bell Division, the Pizza Hut Division, and the Habit Burger Grill Division segments. It also operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill brands, which specialize in chicken, pizza, made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches, Mexican-style food categories, and other food products.