At the time of this writing, shares of Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM), a company that competes with McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), Burger King (NYSE: BKC), and Wendy's/Arby's Group (NYSE: WEN), were trading higher by well over 4%. Volume was doing well, too. Interestingly enough, Yum! Brands will be reporting Q3 earnings on Tuesday, October 6, after the bell. Does this mean that you should buy in ahead of the release?

On the surface, I suppose the market is telling you that Yum! Brands would indeed make a good earnings trade. Not only is the stock up nicely this afternoon, but it isn't too far from a 52-week high.

After the closing bell last night, fast-food restaurant operator YUM! Brands (NYSE: YUM) stepped into the earnings spotlight, reporting a first-quarter profit that dropped 14% compared to a year ago.

Nevertheless, the company's earnings of 46 cents per share topped the consensus estimate of 40 cents per share. The company's sales dropped by 8% to $2.2 billion, which was worse than Wall Street's expected $2.35 billion.

The company noted that gains in overseas markets were undermined a bit by currency losses and a decline in store traffic in the United States at the company's KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants.

When the economy gets tough, eat fried chicken. This must be the mantra of many Britons; at least, that's the way Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) is betting. The company this weekend announced it was opening 200 to 300 new stores in north England and south Wales over the next few years, increasing its current concentration by about 30%. On top of relatively good earnings reported for the fiscal fourth quarter earlier this month, Yum! Brands is looking almost ... optimistic. Could it be?

It could. Not only is KFC opening outlets in England and China as the rest of the world cowers in job-cutting fear of the Things To Come, but the stock is in a hopeful place; at about $28.70 this afternoon, up 0.24% on the day and, having recovered from a low near $22 in November 2008, seemingly headed in an upward arc toward its year-ago territory above $35. At this price, and with this great hope for the future, KFC could be a good buy.

Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM), whose competitive colleagues include McDonald's Corporation (NYSE: MCD), Burger King Holdings Inc. (NYSE: BKC), and Wendy's Arby's Group (NYSE: WEN), reported earnings for Q4 and the full fiscal year on Tuesday after the bell.

Net sales increased 4% for the quarter to $3.4 billion, and earnings per share on an adjusted basis went up 5% to $0.46. According to the earnings preview, sales essentially met Wall Street's view, but net income was beat by a penny. For the year, Yum! saw a net sales increase of 8% to $11.3 billion, and its adjusted bottom line increased by 14% to $1.91 per share. Once again, sales were in-line, and earnings beat by the proverbial penny.

Yum Brands (NYSE:YUM), parent of KFC, has hit a slowdown in sales in China. Yum's quarterly profits fell in the last reported period, and it was overseas sales that got dinged the most.

According to Reuters, "Probably it's the (same-store sales comparison) in China that's spooking people ... I think analysts had expected probably a little higher number," said Edward Jones analyst Jack Russo.

China has been the land of infinite growth for many American companies that have hit slower growth in the U.S., often because of high market penetration there. KFC may believe that it cannot open more stores in its home market without taking business away from its existing store. The size of the Chinese market is big enough so the the chicken food retailer should be able to keep setting up new locations for years.

McDonald's Corp. (NYSE: MCD) showed itself to be recession resistant in its recent earnings release. But will the same be true for Yum! Brands Inc. (NYSE: YUM), parent of such fast-food standbys as Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC?

Yum! Brands is scheduled to release fourth-quarter 2008 results today after the market closes, and to discuss those results tomorrow, February 4, in a conference call at 9:15 AM ET. You can listen in to the call via the live webcast on the company's website.

It's right there in the stock symbol: for Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM), parent of Kentucky Fried Chicken, Taco Bell and Pizza Hut, is all about good taste. None of the food conglomerates' brands have ever been widely recognized for their healthfulness; in fact, it's safe to say that consumers passionate about healthy eating consider the entire suite of fast-service restaurants dens of iniquity.

Yum is trying to change all that. No, not by making any of the restaurants' foods more healthy, but by targeting consumers who are looking to lose weight with its new Keep It Balanced web site. The site shows laughing, gorgeous, healthy consumers holding chalupas and sodas, while exhorting weight-conscious readers to "Keep a record of what you eat and drink" and "Be Patient!" while ordering sauce on the side at Taco Bell and (seriously?) removing the skin and breading from your KFC fried chicken. Meanwhile shadowy figures dance around the corners of the site's frames in moves reminiscent of Tai Chi; a discipline that I would be willing to bet 90% of the company's consumers don't practice and, likely, consider ridiculous.

The message: our food is so totally unhealthy, but you can make it healthy by picking off all the tasty bits. Then you'll be free to head to martial arts training with a clear conscience. Brilliant. Or, perhaps, absolutely unbrilliant and obviously meant only to pay lip service to criticism that the company's foods are contributing to our nation's decidedly unhealthy relationship with food, a half-hearted effort to associate its brands with the "diet season" of January. In my estimation, the site is a waste of marketing dollars and, as long as you're not an investor, laughable.

Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) wants to educate its patrons. No, it's not going to be offering history lessons to go along with its personal pizzas, fried chicken and burritos. It just wants to make sure you know exactly how many calories are in the stuff you eat at its restaurants. The information will be posted at company-owned locations over the next few years. Management is hoping that franchise locations will also participate in the initiative (I'm sure most eventually will).

Personally, I think this is a great idea. How could anybody be opposed? After all, if I'm in a Pizza Hut, I want to know how much damage I'm doing to myself. Yes, I am one of those people who actually checks out the nutrition pages on the sites of fast-food joints such as McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), Burger King (NYSE: BKC) and Wendy's Arby's Group (NYSE: WEN).

But yes, there is a downside for shareholders when this type of information is made available. Indeed, the more I've learned about the health effects of a bad diet, the more conservative I've been about going to a KFC or a McDonald's. No doubt Yum! will see some challenges from people scaling back on buying the junk food it sells. Will there be a significant effect? Will Yum! and its various chains disappear as a result of this decision? No. Management will simply adjust, if it becomes necessary, and will try to offer healthier selections.

Referring to his long-recommended position in YUM! Brands (NYSE: YUM), Louis Basenese exclaims, "I've spent 1,308 days tracking its price movements and written 11,239 words expounding its virtues."

Indeed, the associate Investment Director for The Oxford Club states, "If I could only recommend one stock to own for the next decade, hands down YUM! Brands would be the one."

"YUM! Brands, operator of KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell, is quietly transforming itself into an international juggernaut. Today, roughly half of its operations and profits come from outside our borders. Tomorrow (okay, not that quickly, but soon), more than two thirds of its business will be based outside the United States.

"And the transition and timing couldn't be more perfect. More than half the word's investable market capitalization is now outside the United States. And that percentage keeps growing.

This post is part of our Battle of the Brands feature. Let us know which brand you prefer, and check out other Battle of the Brands posts.

Ahhhh... Kentucky Fried Chicken from the Colonel. Then it became KFC. Now it's Kentucky Fried Chicken again. Any way you slice it, they have some awfully good chicken and the most delicious gravy ever. Please don't tell me how many calories I'm eating or whether I'm next on the heart attack list thanks to all the fat.

Kentucky Fried Chicken is one of multiple restaurants under the Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) umbrella, which also includes Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and Long John Silver's. The menu has changed a bit over the years, but the mainstay of KFC will always be the chicken dinners. You can currently get your chicken in original or extra crispy. Or you can choose the more modern chicken strips or popcorn chicken.

Popeye's Chicken, owned by AFC Enterprises (NASDAQ: AFCE), refers to itself as "New Orleans Chicken." With over 1,900 stores open at the end of 2007, Popeye's provides a little more variety in addition to the standard chicken meals. Of particular interest are the "Louisiana Legends," which include Creole, Jambalaya, Etoufee, and Smothered Chicken.

For a true chicken experience, I think KFC is the way to go. But if you prefer to spice it up and get a little New Orleans style food with your chicken, Popeye's is your brand of choice!

Vote in our poll for KFC or Popeye's as your preferred brand, and let us know in the comments why you love it.

Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) reported Q1 numbers Tuesday after the bell, and the company came through with double-digit growth on the bottom line. Net sales increased 8%, and earnings per share, adjusted for special items, increased 19% to $0.42.

There's a lot of cool stuff in this report that shareholders will view in a positive light. The international story for Yum! is a good one, with operating profit for this part of the company increasing 18%. China continues to be a strong territory for the KFC, Taco Bell, and Pizza Hut brands -- as many have pointed out, Yum! is a great way to gain exposure to this market. And how about this -- management saw fit to buy back shares of the company to the tune of almost a billion bucks! That says something to shareholders, as does the increased guidance. Granted, Yum! upped the per-share expectation by only a couple of pennies to $1.87 (excluding items), but that's still the right direction, isn't it? Also, according to Briefing.com, the company beat Wall Street's expectations by two cents.

Yum!, which competes with McDonald's (NYSE: MCD), Burger King (NYSE: BKC), Wendy's (NYSE: WEN), and all manner of neighborhood eateries, needs to continue the good fight on the home front. It reversed a negative same-store sales trend this past quarter, but management must not rest on this nice stat -- Yum! must explore better marketing campaigns and branding tactics to keep the comps headed higher. Yum!'s stock is not far from a 52-week high, but I'm currently bullish on its prospects.

Disclosure: I own none of the companies mentioned here; positions can change at any time.

Yum Brands (NYSE: YUM) has an exciting new plan to revive its sagging KFC chain: moving the emphasis away from fried chicken.

Now wait a minute you say: How can Kentucky FRIED CHICKEN possibly re-invent itself as what CEO hopes will be a "nonfried chicken platform."

I doubt that it can, although I understand the temptation. Fried chicken has become synonymous with poor health and KFC has tried to change that image by changing its name from Kentucky Fried Chicken to KFC.

Does Yum really think people are that stupid -- or that KFC will be able to re-establish itself as something other than a fried chicken joint? What's the point of even trying? That is KFC's brand. If you want to make it into a non-fried chicken restaurant, why not just start a new chain?

The fact is that KFC will in all probability sink or swim as a fried chicken restaurant -- radical reinventions of brands that are synonymous with one product almost never work.

Yum is trying to turn hula hoops into Furby's.

Yum! Brands (NYSE: YUM) reported earnings last night, and while they weren't the stuff of bubble-like growth, I found them tasty enough. The top line grew by a tame 9% for fiscal 2007, while the bottom line expanded by a much healthier (did I actually use the word "healthier" in a post about Yum! Brands?) 15%, with earnings per diluted share rising to $1.68 versus $1.46 for fiscal 2006. You can thank growth in China, a lower tax rate, a reduction in share count due to buybacks, and that little thing that so many investors love but feels so un-American -- the weak greenback -- for the bottom-line performance.

I've never been to Taco Bell, there are no Pizza Huts in my area, and I only get KFC a few times a year (one of those times being Thanksgiving -- I kid you not, no turkey for me), but I think Yum! is an interesting company and its stock is one that long-term investors can feel comfortable looking at. In my opinion, its P/E is reasonable based on company guidance of $1.85 for 2008. In addition, operating cash flow for 2007 increased 20% to $1.6 billion.

Big caveat here is the dismal same-store performance experienced in the U.S -- system-wide comps were flat and company-wide comps declined 3%. Bad though that may be, I still have confidence in the value of the brands, and I believe that, in time, management will stumble upon new marketing campaigns to get the comps up. For now, investors can look positively upon the company's recent dividend history and the willingness of Yum! to purchase its own shares. With shares are off their highs and with the company's quarterly results of 44 cents per share beating analyst estimates yet again, you'll see why Yum! might indeed be worth a bit of diligence.

Saturday, I was honored to be a bridesmaid in one of my best friend's weddings. The day started at 8:00 a.m. with a hair appointment - following a late rehearsal-dinner night on Friday - and didn't conclude until exactly 2:02 a.m. Why do I remember the end time so well? Because if I'd only concluded all of the dancing, the drinking, and the well-wishing 3 minutes earlier, I would have made it to the Taco Bell drive-through in time for a very late-night snack, or what the Yum! Brands, Inc. (NYSE: YUM) unit calls the "fourth meal." I had to settle for a competitor that keeps its drive-through open 24 hours but doesn't offer 7-layer burritos.

Turns out I'm not the only one with a hankering for Taco Bell food. Its parent company, which also operates the KFC, Pizza Hut, and Long John Silver's brands, reported after the close that its third-quarter profit jumped 17% to $270 million, or 50 cents per share. This figure was a nickel above analysts' expectations.

Revenue rose 13% to $2.56 billion on a year-over-year basis, also exceeding the Street's consensus view (of $2.44 billion). Looking forward, YUM now expects to book full-year earnings results of $1.65 per share, a penny above analysts' estimates.

YUM! Brands (NYSE: YUM) implied volatility suggests flat earnings per share (EPS) risk:

YUM will report EPS after the close on October 8th. CIBC says "YUM's solid global portfolio leaves it on-track to meet annual guidance. We also look for a div and potential buyback increase in 2H07." YUM July option implied volatility of 34 is above its 26-week average of 27 and below a level prior to its previous EPS release in July according to Track Data, suggesting flat near term EPS risk.

Taser (NASDAQ: TASR) 81cents to $17.39 on more unconfirmed rumors of contracts wins:

Recent unconfirmed chatter is circulating about a French government win. TASR October option implied volatility of 64 is above its 26-week average of 55 according to Track Data, suggesting larger risk.

Daily options update is provided by Stock Specialist Paul Foster of theflyonthewall.com.