National Pension Service Has $4.96 Million Holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

National Pension Service lessened its stake in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 4.5% in the 4th quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The institutional investor owned 102,881 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,839 shares during the quarter. National Pension Service’s holdings in Yum China were worth $4,956,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 4th quarter valued at $29,000. Farther Finance Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in Yum China by 43.9% during the 3rd quarter. Farther Finance Advisors LLC now owns 846 shares of the company’s stock valued at $38,000 after purchasing an additional 258 shares during the last quarter. Prospera Private Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 3rd quarter valued at $110,000. Key Financial Inc lifted its holdings in Yum China by 540.0% during the 3rd quarter. Key Financial Inc now owns 2,560 shares of the company’s stock valued at $115,000 after purchasing an additional 2,160 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Ashton Thomas Securities LLC acquired a new stake in Yum China during the 3rd quarter valued at $139,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Down 1.6 %

YUMC opened at $49.40 on Friday. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $28.50 and a fifty-two week high of $52.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a current ratio of 1.29. The company has a market capitalization of $18.76 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.20, a P/E/G ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.33. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $46.69 and a 200-day moving average of $44.13.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.30 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.31 by ($0.01). Yum China had a return on equity of 13.83% and a net margin of 8.06%. On average, equities analysts expect that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 1.94%. This is an increase from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 41.20%.

Insider Transactions at Yum China

In related news, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction on Monday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total value of $188,019.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 56,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This trade represents a 6.45 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on YUMC. StockNews.com downgraded Yum China from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised Yum China from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and raised their price target for the company from $35.50 to $60.00 in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a hold rating, three have given a buy rating and one has issued a strong buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Yum China currently has a consensus rating of “Buy” and an average price target of $49.57.

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.