Fernwood Investment Management LLC Lowers Stock Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Fernwood Investment Management LLC lessened its holdings in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 6.8% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 29,350 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,150 shares during the quarter. Fernwood Investment Management LLC’s holdings in Yum China were worth $1,245,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of YUMC. Annis Gardner Whiting Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in Yum China during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. NBC Securities Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China in the third quarter worth $29,000. Anchor Investment Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China in the fourth quarter worth $40,000. Venturi Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China in the third quarter worth $44,000. Finally, Wetzel Investment Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of Yum China in the fourth quarter worth $48,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Stock Performance

YUMC stock traded up $0.39 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $40.04. 3,743,798 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 3,452,327. The firm has a market cap of $15.70 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.23, a PEG ratio of 1.48 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01, a current ratio of 1.42 and a quick ratio of 1.24. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $40.03 and its 200-day simple moving average is $41.72. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 1-year low of $33.55 and a 1-year high of $64.50.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 6th. The company reported $0.25 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.13 by $0.12. The business had revenue of $2.49 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $2.32 billion. Yum China had a net margin of 7.53% and a return on equity of 11.63%. The company’s revenue was up 19.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $0.13 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.2 earnings per share for the current year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 26th. Shareholders of record on Tuesday, March 5th were issued a dividend of $0.16 per share. This represents a $0.64 annualized dividend and a yield of 1.60%. This is an increase from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.13. The ex-dividend date was Monday, March 4th. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 32.65%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

YUMC has been the topic of a number of research reports. HSBC cut their price objective on shares of Yum China from $66.80 to $51.30 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, March 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reiterated a “neutral” rating and issued a $38.00 price objective (down previously from $65.00) on shares of Yum China in a research note on Thursday, January 4th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and three have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $54.65.

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.