Motley Fool Asset Management LLC Increases Stock Position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC)

Motley Fool Asset Management LLC lifted its position in Yum China Holdings, Inc. (NYSE:YUMC) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 228,114 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 13,358 shares during the quarter. Motley Fool Asset Management LLC owned about 0.06% of Yum China worth $10,988,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in YUMC. William Blair Investment Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Yum China in the fourth quarter worth approximately $243,901,000. Mawer Investment Management Ltd. purchased a new stake in Yum China in the fourth quarter worth $203,179,000. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Yum China during the fourth quarter worth $199,722,000. FMR LLC boosted its stake in shares of Yum China by 4,176.5% during the third quarter. FMR LLC now owns 3,588,977 shares of the company’s stock valued at $161,576,000 after purchasing an additional 3,505,053 shares during the period. Finally, Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its holdings in shares of Yum China by 399.0% in the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 3,727,549 shares of the company’s stock worth $179,556,000 after purchasing an additional 2,980,589 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 85.58% of the company’s stock.

Yum China Trading Up 0.6 %

NYSE YUMC opened at $53.28 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $20.04 billion, a PE ratio of 22.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 1.72 and a beta of 0.32. Yum China Holdings, Inc. has a 52 week low of $28.50 and a 52 week high of $53.99. The company has a quick ratio of 1.15, a current ratio of 1.29 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.01. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $49.18 and a 200 day moving average price of $47.03.

Yum China (NYSE:YUMC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, February 6th. The company reported $0.30 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $0.31 by ($0.01). Yum China had a net margin of 8.06% and a return on equity of 13.83%. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that Yum China Holdings, Inc. will post 2.54 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Yum China Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Thursday, March 27th. Stockholders of record on Thursday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $0.24 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, March 6th. This represents a $0.96 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 1.80%. This is an increase from Yum China’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.16. Yum China’s dividend payout ratio is 41.20%.

Insider Activity at Yum China

In other news, insider Jeff Kuai sold 3,900 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, February 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $48.21, for a total value of $188,019.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 56,602 shares in the company, valued at $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 SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Also, CEO Joey Wat sold 37,252 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, March 5th. The shares were sold at an average price of $49.71, for a total value of $1,851,796.92. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 382,657 shares in the company, valued at approximately $19,021,879.47. This represents a 8.87 % decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. Insiders sold 45,152 shares of company stock valued at $2,242,176 in the last three months. 0.30% of the stock is owned by insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

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

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.