BNP Paribas Exane Has Lowered Expectations for Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) Stock Price

Key Points

• BNP Paribas Exane cut its price target on Kraft Heinz to $17 (from $18), which implies about a 28% downside from the stock's current price.
• Multiple brokers have trimmed targets recently (Evercore, JPMorgan, Jefferies), and MarketBeat shows a consensus rating of "Reduce" with a consensus price target of $23.47 (1 Strong Buy, 15 Hold, 4 Sell).
• Kraft Heinz posted a Q1 beat (EPS $0.58 vs $0.50 consensus; revenue $6.05B vs $5.89B), set FY2026 guidance of 1.98–2.10 EPS, and announced supportive moves including a $0.40 quarterly dividend and a $1.1B tender offer to repurchase notes.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) had its price target lowered by equities researchers at BNP Paribas Exane from $18.00 to $17.00 in a report released on Thursday,MarketScreener reports. BNP Paribas Exane's price objective indicates a potential downside of 28.04% from the stock's current price.

Several other equities analysts have also recently commented on the stock. Evercore reduced their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $25.00 to $22.00 in a research note on Thursday, February 12th. BTIG Research began coverage on shares of Kraft Heinz in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They set a "neutral" rating for the company. Weiss Ratings reissued a "sell (d)" rating on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Tuesday, April 21st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $22.00 to $21.00 and set an "underweight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, March 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $23.00 to $20.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, March 30th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fifteen have given a Hold rating and four have assigned a Sell rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Reduce" and a consensus price target of $23.47.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

NASDAQ KHC opened at $23.62 on Thursday. The company's 50 day moving average is $22.78 and its 200-day moving average is $23.82. Kraft Heinz has a 12-month low of $21.03 and a 12-month high of $29.19. The company has a quick ratio of 0.79, a current ratio of 1.20 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $28.01 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.86 and a beta of 0.06.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.08. Kraft Heinz had a negative net margin of 23.05% and a positive return on equity of 7.26%. The company had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.62 earnings per share. The company's quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. Kraft Heinz has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.100 EPS. Sell-side analysts predict that Kraft Heinz will post 2.04 earnings per share for the current year.

Insider Transactions at Kraft Heinz

In other Kraft Heinz news, insider Cory Onell sold 4,991 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.34, for a total value of $121,480.94. Following the sale, the insider owned 197,463 shares of the company's stock, valued at $4,806,249.42. This trade represents a 2.47% decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at the SEC website. 0.24% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kraft Heinz

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in KHC. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 3,034.1% in the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 16,477,002 shares of the company's stock worth $39,957,000 after acquiring an additional 15,951,271 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 4th quarter worth approximately $332,382,000. Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its position in shares of Kraft Heinz by 75.1% in the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 13,694,483 shares of the company's stock worth $351,263,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,967 shares in the last quarter. Barclays PLC boosted its position in shares of Kraft Heinz by 77.8% in the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,973,146 shares of the company's stock worth $217,599,000 after purchasing an additional 3,926,141 shares in the last quarter. Finally, California Public Employees Retirement System grew its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 94.8% in the first quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 4,347,594 shares of the company's stock worth $97,777,000 after acquiring an additional 2,116,175 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Trending Headlines about Kraft Heinz

Here are the key news stories impacting Kraft Heinz this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat — KHC reported adjusted EPS of $0.58 (vs. ~$0.50 consensus) and revenue of ~$6.05B, showing early sales improvement that traders view as evidence the turnaround is working. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend commitment — the company declared a $0.40 quarterly dividend (annualized yield roughly 6.8%), which supports income-focused investors and underpins valuation support. (Company announcement)
• Positive Sentiment: Investing in growth — Kraft Heinz is boosting marketing spend ~37% and promoting innovations (e.g., protein Kraft Mac & Cheese) plus an NFL sponsorship, signaling management is prioritizing brand-building to regain share. Read More.
• Positive Sentiment: Balance-sheet move — the company launched a $1.1B cash tender offer to repurchase certain 2046 and 2049 senior notes, a proactive liability-management step that can reduce interest burden and extend maturities. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst stance — Deutsche Bank nudged its price target to $22 from $20 but kept a "hold" rating, which signals limited near-term upside in analyst coverage despite operational improvements. Read More.
• Neutral Sentiment: Market backdrop — a broad market rally (S&P strength) has helped stocks overall, supporting KHC’s move but not reflecting company-specific fundamentals. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Underlying demand weakness — organic sales and volumes slipped; management has cut prices to regain affordability, which helps top-line traffic but pressures margins and operating income near-term. Read More.
• Negative Sentiment: Category and pricing uncertainty — CEO comments about rethinking “price architecture” and questions over the frozen-business strategy signal potential portfolio changes and continued price/mix volatility. Read More.

About Kraft Heinz

The Kraft Heinz Company NASDAQ: KHC is a global food and beverage company formed in 2015 through the merger of Kraft Foods Group and H.J. Heinz Company. The combination created one of the largest packaged-food companies in the world, built around well-known consumer brands. The merger was supported by major investors and established a multi-national platform for branded food products.

Kraft Heinz develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad portfolio of branded packaged foods and condiments.

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