40,000 Yum China $YUMC Shares Sold by Pictet Asset Management Holding SA

Pictet Asset Management Holding SA reduced its stake in Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) by 11.0% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 324,988 shares of the company’s stock after selling 40,000 shares during the quarter. Pictet Asset Management Holding SA owned approximately 0.09% of Yum China worth $13,369,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors have also recently made changes to their positions in YUMC. Kestra Advisory Services LLC grew its holdings in shares of Yum China by 3.5% in the third quarter. Kestra Advisory Services LLC now owns 7,714 shares of the company’s stock valued at $317,000 after acquiring an additional 259 shares in the last quarter. Pathway Financial Advisers LLC purchased a new stake in Yum China during the third quarter worth about $40,000. Bell Investment Advisors Inc increased its holdings in Yum China by 55.5% during the third quarter. Bell Investment Advisors Inc now owns 726 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 259 shares during the last quarter. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd raised its position in Yum China by 9.5% in the third quarter. Ashoka WhiteOak Capital Pte Ltd now owns 31,050 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,277,000 after acquiring an additional 2,700 shares during the period. Finally, D.A. Davidson & CO. boosted its stake in Yum China by 67.0% in the third quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO. now owns 34,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,426,000 after acquiring an additional 13,921 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In related news, insider Warton Wang sold 3,700 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, November 6th. The stock was sold at an average price of $50.56, for a total value of $187,072.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider owned 50,823 shares in the company, valued at $2,569,610.88. The trade was a 6.79% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, insider Jerry Ding sold 3,000 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, November 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.78, for a total transaction of $149,340.00. Following the transaction, the insider owned 1,305 shares in the company, valued at $64,962.90. The trade was a 69.69% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Over the last quarter, insiders sold 37,351 shares of company stock valued at $1,802,753. 0.44% of the stock is currently owned by insiders.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently commented on YUMC shares. Wall Street Zen cut Yum China from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. The Goldman Sachs Group reissued a “buy” rating and issued a $59.00 price target on shares of Yum China in a research report on Thursday, July 30th. Finally, Weiss Ratings raised shares of Yum China from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c+)” rating in a report on Monday, November 2nd. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and one has assigned a Hold rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $59.21.

Yum China Trading Up 0.5%

Shares of YUMC stock opened at $49.28 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $16.60 billion, a PE ratio of 17.03, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.28 and a beta of 0.06. Yum China has a 52-week low of $39.72 and a 52-week high of $58.39. The business’s fifty day moving average is $43.86 and its 200 day moving average is $46.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 0.55 and a current ratio of 0.67.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, November 3rd. The company reported $0.91 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.88 by $0.03. Yum China had a return on equity of 16.48% and a net margin of 7.90%. The business had revenue of $3.48 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $3.50 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $0.76 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that Yum China will post 2.95 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, December 22nd. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, December 1st will be issued a dividend of $0.29 per share. This represents a $1.16 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Tuesday, December 1st. Yum China’s payout ratio is currently 40.28%.

About Yum China

Yum China Holdings operates quick-service and casual-dining restaurants in China. Its portfolio includes KFC and Pizza Hut, along with local and regional brands such as Little Sheep and Huang Ji Huang. The company was separated from Yum! Brands in 2016 and became an independent, publicly traded company. Its restaurants serve a range of meals and beverages, including fried chicken, burgers, pizza, hot pot and other Chinese-style dishes, as well as coffee. Yum China also offers delivery and digital ordering services through its apps and other platforms.