Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM)

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Zacks Investment Research

The operator of Taco Bell, Pizza Hut, and KFC fast food chains, Yum! Brands, Inc ( YUM , Analyst Report ), recently reported fourth quarter 2009 results that modestly surpassed the Zacks Consensus Estimate on the heels of commodity deflation, lower costs and growth across China and International divisions. Results were offset by a sluggish performance in the US division Yum!'s quarterly earnings of 50 cents a share exceeded the Zacks Consensus Estimate of 48 cents, and was up 4 cents from the prior year quarter 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Jason West at Deutsche Bank

KFC has tried to build on the considerable attention given its new grilled chicken in the US after a national rollout last spring Yum's profit is expected to rise even though its sales fell Strong operating profit in China and aggressive expansion overseas have been the main contributors to profit, but Yum's international division reported a 13 percent drop in third quarter profit Analysts and investors will watch for signs of a rebound Deutsche Bank analyst Jason West agreed with Yum's assessment that the company has a long way to go before reaching market saturation in China and its separate international division 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Jason West at Deutsche Bank

For the full year, analysts expect earnings of $226 per share on revenue of $1082 billion compared with actual earnings of $196 per share on revenue of $1128 billion in 2008 ANALYST TAKE: Deutsche Bank analyst Jason West told investors in a research note that Yum expects to benefit from "benign food cost inflation" He added that "we can't recall Yum entering a year where all three divisions were posting negative SSS (same store sales), perhaps making growth more challenging than usual" 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Jim Edwards at BNET

KFC's "Racist" Ad Reveals American Consumers' Ignorance . KFC has pulled an ad in Australia after American YouTube viewers decried it as racist — even though it is not, actually, a racist ad (video below) The events underline the insularity of the US as consumer culture becomes increasingly international, and Americans' infamous ignorance of the way the world works beyond its borders 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - John Glass at Morgan Stanley

I just ate the 'Chicken Snacker' and it tastes better than any other burger I have eaten elsewhere," she said of the chicken sandwich Morgan Stanley analyst John Glass said in a recent note to investors, "We've been slightly disappointed since recommending Yum this summer, as a turn in China has yet to materialize and the US, along with the rest of [the fast food industry], has labored" But he added, "we still contend that Yum is the best positioned to capture the growing global demand for food convenience, particularly in international markets" 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - JP Morgan

Yum stresses positives, mum on Pizza Hut, KFC At an investor day last week, Yum! Brands executives focused largely on positives, like growth in its international business, in China and at Taco Bell, but the company was more silent on some of the more challenging divisions, JPMorgan analysts noted.  

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Zacks Investment Research

Yum! Brands Inc ( YUM , Analyst Report ), the parent of the KFC, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut fast food chains, reiterated its fiscal 2009 earnings per share growth forecast of 12%, excluding one time items, helped by commodity deflation, lower effective tax rate and the addition of 1,400 new units in China and other international markets. Louisville, Kentucky based quick service restaurant operator also said that it expects comparable store sales to fall 3% in mainland China, 1% in Yum Restaurants International (YRI) and 8% in the U.S in fourth quarter 2009. For fiscal 2009, management expects system sales growth of 9% in mainland China and 5% in YRI (excluding foreign currency translation). 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Sara Senatore at Sanford C. Bernstein

The Louisville, Kentucky based company on Friday repeated its 2009 and 2010 earnings growth forecasts, but warned that a "difficult consumer environment" would make it hard to increase sales at its outlets that have been open for a least a year. The company said it expected fourth quarter same restaurant sales to fall 3 percent in mainland China, to fall 1 percent in its other international markets, and to decline 8 percent in the United States, where Yum competes with chains like McDonald's Corp and Domino's Pizza Inc. The update on same store sales trends "will come as a modest disappointment to investors, especially as trends in China appear to have decelerated further, and the stock is likely to come under modest pressure," Bernstein Research analyst Sara Senatore said in a client note. Yum gets more than half its operating profit from China and other overseas businesses, and investors expect most of its future growth to come from those markets, where the company is rapidly building restaurants. "Reinvigorated discounting activity by McDonald's" likely weighed on results from China, Janney Capital Markets analyst Mark Kalinowski said in a note. 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Sara Senatore at Sanford C. Bernstein

According to Bernstein Research analyst Sara Senatore, that news will likely disappoint investors , "especially as trends in China appear to have decelerated further, and the stock is likely to come under modest pressure.". By some estimates, there are about 600 million potential urban customers in China, or about twice the current population of the US. Yum Brands plans to expand to about 20,000 restaurants in China. The company now operates about 2,700 restaurants in 550 cities in China. Domestic growth will be much slower and probably more expensive as competitors battle each other for market share in a mature, slow growth market. 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Minyanville

Yum Brands ( YUM ) maintained its full year earnings outlook and expects 2009 earnings to increase about 12% over last year's earnings of $1.96 a share, suggesting 2009 profit of about $2.20 a share. That would beat the consensus earnings estimate of $2.16 a share. But the news wasn't all good. 

Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) - Jay Yarow at Business Insider

Taco Bell is probably not invited to 50 Cent's club. . Taco Bell sent a letter, "addressed" to 50 Cent, to media outlets, jokingly asking if the rapper would change his name to 79, 89 or 99 Cent. . Unfortunately, they failed to inform 50 of the ad campaign.