Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) Stock Price & Analysis
Market: NYSE • Sector: Consumer Cyclical • Industry: Restaurants
Yum! Brands, Inc. (YUM) Profile & Business Summary
YUM! Brands, Inc., together with its subsidiaries, develops, operates, and franchises quick service restaurants worldwide. It operates through four segments: the KFC Division, the Taco Bell Division, the Pizza Hut Division, and the Habit Burger Grill Division. The company operates restaurants under the KFC, Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and The Habit Burger Grill brands, which specialize in chicken, pizza, made-to-order chargrilled burgers, sandwiches, Mexican-style food categories, and other food products. As of December 31, 2021, it had 26,934 KFC units; 18,381 Pizza Hut units; 7,791 Taco Bell units; and 318 The Habit Burger Grill units in approximately 157 countries and territories. The company was formerly known as TRICON Global Restaurants, Inc. and changed its name to YUM! Brands, Inc. in May 2002. YUM! Brands, Inc. was incorporated in 1997 and is headquartered in Louisville, Kentucky.
Key Information
| Ticker | YUM |
|---|---|
| Exchange | NYSE |
| Official Site | https://www.yum.com |
Market Trend Overview for YUM
One model, two time views: what the market looks like right now, and where the larger trend is heading over time.
SRE (WhaleQuant Structural Regime Engine) SRE evaluates how price structure evolves across daily and weekly timeframes to define the prevailing market regime. Beyond identifying trends, consolidations, and exhaustion phases, it distinguishes between raw structural strength and deployable participation quality. The model dynamically adjusts for structural context and extension risk, assessing whether conditions are supportive, stretched, fragile, or structurally impaired. Its purpose is not to forecast precise price levels, but to determine whether risk deployment is aligned with underlying market structure.
Longer-Term Market Trend (Mid to Long Term)
Shows the bigger market trend, how strong it is, and where risks may start to build over the next few weeks or months. — Updated as of 2026-03-25 (ET)
As of 2026-03-25, YUM is showing signs of slowing down. Over the longer term, the trend remains bullish.
YUM last closed at 159.16. The price is about 0.5 ATR below its recent average price (160.61), and the market is currently in a trend that may be losing strength. Price at 159.16 is near light support around 157.24. Momentum may slow, while light resistance sits near 161.06. View Support & Resistance from Options
The broader uptrend is still intact, but price has moved far from its recent average, increasing the risk of a pullback.
Trend score: 55 out of 100. Overall alignment is unclear. The market is currently in a late-stage trend that may be losing strength. The longer-term trend is still positive, but short-term signals are not yet confirming it.
A key downside level is near 151.33. If price falls below this area, the current upward trend would likely weaken or break.
On 2026-03-04, trend conditions deteriorated, suggesting that moves in the prior direction became less dependable.
[2026-03-24] Price moved quickly and looked strong, but participation was limited.
Recent bars show mixed price behavior without a clear shift in structural quality or efficiency.
There was no clear sign of meaningful positions being carried into the overnight session.
NOTE: This next-day up/down probability forecast module is still being tested for accuracy. Please do not rely on it for investment decisions. The model does not account for black swan events or company-specific fundamental news, and its estimates are based solely on technical conditions, capital flow, and market sentiment. View forecast history
This reading is based on the last 20 trading days of 15-minute price, volume, and VWAP data. Price is only slightly below the recent estimated cost basis of 159.92. Price is in the upper half of the main cost band (158.40 to 159.79), which is usually a healthier short-term location because price is holding the stronger side of recent trading activity. The lower down support area sits around 156.52 to 157.91, and it still looks fairly solid. The next higher selling area sits around 159.89 to 160.09, so rebounds may begin to slow as price pushes into that zone. Recent positioning looks fairly balanced, with 45% in profit and 55% under water. From a trading point of view, the structure is still best read by comparing price with the main cost band first, then watching whether the lower support zone or higher supply zone becomes the next directional checkpoint.
Short Interest & Covering Risk for YUM
This analysis looks at overall short interest positioning, focusing on the broader setup rather than short-term noise.
Shows how likely a short squeeze may be under current market conditions.
Short Exposure Percentile
Short interest is within its typical range, with no clear imbalance between buyers and sellers. (Historical percentile: 50%)
Structure Analysis
YUM Short positioning looks normal. Current days to cover is 3.5 trading days, meaning short positions could unwind at a normal pace. Short covering is likely to have a normal impact on price moves. No meaningful structural fragility is currently detected (Fragility Score 19/100, DTC percentile 75%) with short positioning continuing to expand and liquidity softening modestly (volume -18%).
Risk Summary
No clear bull trap characteristics detected. Recent price behavior remains broadly consistent with current positioning.This reading helps confirm that current price action remains structurally healthy and does not indicate elevated trap risk.
Why Price Reactions May Be Stronger?
Days-to-Cover is elevated versus its own history, but absolute short interest remains moderate. In the latest reporting period, short interest continues to increase. Price action is compressing (range is tightening), which can make breaks more sensitive. Adaptive thresholds applied to liquidity weakness, near-high detection, and compression sensitivity. As a result, similar news or market events could lead to price moves about 1× larger than usual.
Note:
Short interest data is reported every two weeks by
FINRA.
The most recent snapshot is
2026-02-27 (ET).
Because this data updates slowly, it is not intended to predict short-term price moves. Instead, it helps describe longer-term market structure and where pressure may be building if prices begin to move.