Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) Posts Earnings Results, Beats Expectations By $0.05 EPS

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) released its earnings results on Wednesday. The company reported $0.40 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.35 by $0.05, FiscalAI reports. The company had revenue of $2.82 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $2.72 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 7.81% and a return on equity of 14.08%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm earned $0.30 EPS.

Here are the key takeaways from Yum China’s conference call:

• Store growth and sales momentum: Yum China opened more than 1,700 net new stores in 2025 (>18,000 total) and expects to exceed 20,000 stores in 2026, while same?store sales were positive for three consecutive quarters and Q4 system sales grew 7%.
• Profitability improvement: Full?year operating profit rose 11% to $1.3B, OP margin expanded to 10.9% (highest since the U.S. listing excluding special items), Q4 operating profit grew 23%, and ROIC increased to 17.3%.
• Strong shareholder returns: Management returned $1.5B in 2025, committed to $1.5B annually through 2026, raised the quarterly dividend by 21% and initiated a $460M repurchase for H1 2026, with plans to return ~100% of free cash flow from 2027 onward.
• Delivery mix and cost pressure: Delivery mix rose to ~53% in Q4, driving higher rider/labor costs; the company expects delivery mix to increase further in 2026 and warned of tougher Q1 margin comparisons and smaller commodity cost tailwinds.
• New formats, modules and tech for growth: Management is scaling K?Coffee (2,200 locations), expanding K?Pro, piloting Gemini KFC/Pizza Hut side?by?side pairs and accelerating franchising (franchise mix of new openings rose to 36%), while deploying Gen AI (QSmart, Smart K) to boost efficiency and customer engagement.

Yum China Stock Up 2.8%

Shares of NYSE:YUMC traded up $1.40 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $52.14. 536,808 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 1,120,031. The stock has a market cap of $18.84 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.62 and a beta of 0.14. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.32. The stock has a 50-day moving average of $48.17 and a two-hundred day moving average of $46.03. Yum China has a 52-week low of $41.00 and a 52-week high of $53.99.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In other Yum China news, insider Warton Wang sold 8,187 shares of the stock in a transaction on Monday, November 24th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.28, for a total transaction of $395,268.36. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 46,847 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,261,773.16. This trade represents a 14.88% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Also, insider Jeff Kuai sold 5,167 shares of Yum China stock in a transaction on Thursday, November 20th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.00, for a total value of $248,016.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider directly owned 56,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,716,896. The trade was a 8.37% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last three months, insiders have sold 18,242 shares of company stock valued at $878,397. 0.40% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Yum China

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. CreativeOne Wealth LLC boosted its position in shares of Yum China by 2.9% in the third quarter. CreativeOne Wealth LLC now owns 8,261 shares of the company’s stock worth $355,000 after purchasing an additional 235 shares during the period. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of Yum China by 29.5% during the 2nd quarter. Geneos Wealth Management Inc. now owns 1,452 shares of the company’s stock valued at $65,000 after buying an additional 331 shares in the last quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in Yum China by 33.1% in the 3rd quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 1,386 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,000 after buying an additional 345 shares during the period. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. increased its stake in Yum China by 2.9% in the 3rd quarter. Northwestern Mutual Wealth Management Co. now owns 12,509 shares of the company’s stock worth $537,000 after buying an additional 352 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Glenmede Investment Management LP lifted its position in shares of Yum China by 3.8% in the third quarter. Glenmede Investment Management LP now owns 10,215 shares of the company’s stock valued at $438,000 after acquiring an additional 371 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have issued reports on YUMC. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of Yum China in a research report on Wednesday, January 21st. CLSA reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $55.00 target price on shares of Yum China in a research note on Tuesday, November 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Yum China presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $55.00.

Yum China declared that its Board of Directors has initiated a stock repurchase program on Friday, December 12th that permits the company to repurchase $1.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 5.8% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its stock is undervalued.

Yum China Company Profile

Yum China Holdings, Inc operates as the largest quick-service restaurant company in China, through its ownership and franchising of brands such as KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell. The company’s core business encompasses full-service and fast?casual dining, takeout and delivery channels, as well as ancillary services including loyalty programs and digital ordering platforms. Yum China’s restaurants offer a diverse menu that adapts global brand concepts to local consumer preferences, featuring items such as soy?marinated chicken, customized pizzas and region?inspired side dishes.

In addition to its signature brands, Yum China has expanded its portfolio to include innovative concepts tailored to evolving market trends, such as plant?based offerings, self?service kiosks and mobile app integrations.