51,456 Shares in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) Acquired by ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC

ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC bought a new stake in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor bought 51,456 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,183,000. Yum China comprises approximately 2.1% of ABS Direct Equity Fund LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest holding.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in YUMC. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in Yum China during the third quarter worth approximately $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China during the third quarter worth $29,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Yum China in the fourth quarter valued at $40,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new position in Yum China in the third quarter valued at $44,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in Yum China during the fourth quarter worth about $48,000. 85.58% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Yum China Stock Up 2.8 %

NYSE:YUMC traded up $1.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $38.41. The company had a trading volume of 2,641,858 shares, compared to its average volume of 2,971,875. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $39.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $41.25. The firm has a market capitalization of $15.06 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.30, a PEG ratio of 1.81 and a beta of 0.46. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1 year low of $33.55 and a 1 year high of $64.50. The company has a current ratio of 1.42, a quick ratio of 1.24 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last announced its earnings results on Monday, April 29th. The company reported $0.71 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.65 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $2.96 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.05 billion. Yum China had a return on equity of 11.65% and a net margin of 7.49%. The company’s revenue was up 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.19 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 18th. Stockholders of record on Tuesday, May 28th will be paid a $0.16 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Tuesday, May 28th. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.67%. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.16%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Separately, HSBC dropped their price target on shares of Yum China from $66.80 to $51.30 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, March 6th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Yum China currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $54.65.

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.