Vanguard Group Inc. Decreases Stock Holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Vanguard Group Inc. cut its holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 2.1% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 15,043,156 shares of the company’s stock after selling 321,157 shares during the quarter. Vanguard Group Inc.’s holdings in Yum China were worth $719,396,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the business. Kentucky Trust Co bought a new stake in shares of Yum China in the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in Yum China by 58.5% during the fourth quarter. EverSource Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 878 shares of the company’s stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Signaturefd LLC raised its position in Yum China by 32.7% during the fourth quarter. Signaturefd LLC now owns 1,825 shares of the company’s stock valued at $88,000 after purchasing an additional 450 shares during the period. Independence Bank of Kentucky lifted its stake in shares of Yum China by 1,374.5% in the 4th quarter. Independence Bank of Kentucky now owns 2,949 shares of the company’s stock valued at $142,000 after purchasing an additional 2,749 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Flagship Wealth Advisors LLC purchased a new position in shares of Yum China in the 4th quarter worth approximately $159,000. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

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

Insider Buying and Selling at Yum China

In other news, CEO Joey Wat sold 37,252 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $49.71, for a total transaction of $1,851,796.92. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 382,657 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $19,021,879.47. This represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through this link. Also, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction 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 transaction, the insider now owns 56,602 shares in the company, valued at approximately $2,728,782.42. This represents a 6.45 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold a total of 45,152 shares of company stock valued at $2,242,176 in the last three months. Company insiders own 0.30% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Down 2.4 %

Shares of NYSE YUMC opened at $51.89 on Monday. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $28.50 and a 1 year high of $53.99. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $48.71 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $46.73. The company has a market cap of $19.52 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.27, a PEG ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.29 and a quick ratio of 1.15.

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

Yum China Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Investors of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. This is a positive change from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.96 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 1.85%. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 41.20%.

About Yum China

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.