Natixis Advisors LLC Reduces Stock Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Natixis Advisors LLC trimmed its holdings in shares of Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 19.5% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 282,561 shares of the company’s stock after selling 68,464 shares during the quarter. Natixis Advisors LLC’s holdings in Yum China were worth $13,610,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Kentucky Trust Co purchased a new position in Yum China during the fourth quarter worth $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of Yum China by 58.5% during the 4th quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 878 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after purchasing an additional 324 shares during the period. Prospera Private Wealth LLC bought a new position in Yum China during the 3rd quarter valued at about $110,000. Independence Bank of Kentucky raised its position in Yum China by 1,374.5% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,949 shares of the company’s stock worth $142,000 after purchasing an additional 2,749 shares during the period. Finally, Sapient Capital LLC bought a new stake in Yum China in the fourth quarter worth about $202,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Yum China Trading Up 0.0 %

NYSE YUMC opened at $53.69 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $20.19 billion, a PE ratio of 23.04, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.35. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 12 month low of $28.50 and a 12 month high of $53.99. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $47.47 and its 200-day moving average price is $45.75. The company has a current ratio of 1.29, a quick ratio of 1.15 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.30 EPS 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%. Equities research analysts forecast that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 earnings per share for the current year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, March 27th. Shareholders of record on Thursday, March 6th will be given a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, March 6th. This is a positive change from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.79%. Yum China’s payout ratio is 41.20%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Separately, StockNews.com cut Yum China from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, February 25th.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, February 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total value of $188,019.00. Following the completion of the sale, the insider now owns 56,602 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This represents a 6.45 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Also, CTO Leila Zhang sold 4,000 shares of Yum China stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, March 14th. The shares were sold at an average price of $50.59, for a total transaction of $202,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief technology officer now directly owns 52,075 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,634,474.25. The trade was a 7.13 % decrease in their ownership of the stock. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last ninety days, insiders sold 45,152 shares of company stock worth $2,242,176. 0.30% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

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.