Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) Trading 6.6% Higher

Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) shares traded up 6.6% on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $50.80 and last traded at $50.46. 6,677,546 shares were traded during trading, an increase of 108% from the average session volume of 3,212,619 shares. The stock had previously closed at $47.35.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Macquarie raised shares of Yum China from an “underperform” rating to an “outperform” rating and upped their target price for the stock from $30.00 to $37.40 in a research note on Tuesday, August 6th. Citigroup raised shares of Yum China to a “strong-buy” rating in a research note on Monday. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating, three have assigned a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $46.18.

Yum China Stock Performance

The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $34.34 and its 200 day simple moving average is $35.28. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.09 and a current ratio of 1.23. The company has a market capitalization of $19.88 billion, a PE ratio of 25.16, a P/E/G ratio of 1.86 and a beta of 0.34.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, August 5th. The company reported $0.55 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.47 by $0.08. Yum China had a net margin of 7.61% and a return on equity of 12.41%. The company had revenue of $2.68 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.76 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $0.47 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up .9% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.22 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 17th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, August 27th were issued a $0.16 dividend. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.25%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Tuesday, August 27th. Yum China’s payout ratio is 32.16%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Jeff Kuai bought 3,900 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was acquired at an average price of $32.72 per share, for a total transaction of $127,608.00. Following the acquisition, the insider now owns 3,900 shares in the company, valued at approximately $127,608. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. In other Yum China news, insider Jeff Kuai purchased 3,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, August 13th. The stock was purchased at an average price of $32.72 per share, for a total transaction of $127,608.00. Following the purchase, the insider now directly owns 3,900 shares in the company, valued at $127,608. The acquisition was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. Also, CEO Joey Wat purchased 3,800 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, August 14th. The shares were acquired at an average price of $33.98 per share, with a total value of $129,124.00. Following the purchase, the chief executive officer now owns 272,944 shares in the company, valued at $9,274,637.12. The disclosure for this purchase can be found here. In the last quarter, insiders purchased 18,400 shares of company stock worth $619,671. Corporate insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Yum China

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of YUMC. Mather Group LLC. purchased a new position in Yum China during the 1st quarter worth $26,000. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC raised its position in Yum China by 53.7% during the 2nd quarter. Eagle Bay Advisors LLC now owns 1,088 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after buying an additional 380 shares during the last quarter. LRI Investments LLC purchased a new position in Yum China during the 1st quarter worth $36,000. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new position in Yum China during the 1st quarter worth $39,000. Finally, National Bank of Canada FI raised its position in Yum China by 140.3% during the 2nd quarter. National Bank of Canada FI now owns 1,490 shares of the company’s stock worth $45,000 after buying an additional 870 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

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.