Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE:YUM) is one of the largest restaurant companies in the world, with more than 41,000 restaurants around the globe. The company, which was spun-off from Pepsico Inc. (NYSE:PEP) back in 1997, has become a truly global company that operates three renowned restaurant brands: KFC, Pizza Hut, and Taco Bell. Moreover, Yum! Brands is one of the favorite stocks among the hedge funds tracked by Insider Monkey, with 59 investors owning the stock at the end of the second quarter, up by 14 quarter-over-quarter. Similarly, the value of the overall investments in this stock more than doubled during the three-month period, increasing to $4.06 billion from $1.49 billion. In the following article we will discuss a reflection on the stock from one of Yum! Brands’ largest shareholders, and give a brief overview of the company’s recent developments.
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Getting back to our discussion on Yum! Brands, Daniel Loeb’s Third Point represents the second-largest equity holder of the company at the end of the recent quarter of those investors we monitor, holding an ownership stake of 3.58 million shares valued at $322.04 million at that time. The investment management firm initiated a position in the second-largest global quick service restaurant company in the first quarter of 2015, but also boosted its stake in the company by 9% during the second quarter. It is also worth mentioning that the position accounted for 3.01% of the fund’s portfolio value at the end of June. Daniel Loeb’s letter to investors covering the first quarter discussed the reasoning behind going long on Yum! Brands. Third Point’s “squad” initiated the position on their view that:
“the company was in the early stages of turning the page on recent troubles in its Chinese business. We believe this development should neutralize the largest overhang on the stock, set the stage for a dramatic profit recovery over the next 12-24 months, and change the public market narrative around long-term shareholder value-creation for the company.”
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Let us remind you that Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE:YUM) was involved in a food safety scandal last year, which seriously impacted the company’s profitability and top-line in the quarters following it. Shanghai Husi Food Co, which used to supply KFC and McDonald’s Corp. (NYSE:MCD)’s restaurants in the Shanghai area, was found to be placing new labels on expired meat and was also shown in a TV report reusing meat that had fallen to the floor. It appears that the company’s financial figures continue to be impacted by the scandal last year, as Yum reported that sales in China declined by 4% during the second quarter. However, this represents a major improvement compared to the first quarter, when the company’s same-sale stores in China dropped by 12%.
In the meantime, Yum’s stock performance was great in the first half of the year despite facing challenges in its China division, with its shares advancing by over 23% through June 30. However, the concerns about China’s economic slowdown have since put downward pressure on the stock, which is still 13% in the green year-to-date. Going back to the struggling China division, activist investor Keith Meister, founder of Corvex Capital, previously expressed his belief that Yum! Brands would benefit from spinning off its China business. The activist investor suggested that this division has been a drag on the company’s bottom line following the food safety scandal. Moreover, he asserted that the stock had an upside potential in the range of 50% to 90% should the company pursue a spinoff, while the potential value of the entire business was estimated to be in the range of $130 to $160 per share (read more details here).
Let’s now briefly discuss Yum! Brands’ Taco Bell business, which plans to open new “Cantina” restaurants that will serve “tapas-style” appetizers, and alcoholic drinks. The new restaurants, which are set to be opened in Chicago’s Wicker Park neighborhood and in San Francisco later this month, might unlock a flourishing new revenue stream for the company in the years ahead. However, only time will show whether Taco Bell’s transition will be successful. Meister’s Corvex Capital is the largest shareholder of Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE:YUM) within our database, hoding an activist stake of 15.29 million shares as of June 30.
Disclosure: None
