Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) Receives Consensus Rating of "Reduce" from Brokerages

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is cautious: Seventeen analysts give Kraft Heinz a consensus “Reduce” rating, with five sells, eleven holds, and one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $23.33, below the stock’s reported $24.39 opening price.
• Quarterly results exceeded estimates but weakened year over year: Kraft Heinz reported adjusted earnings of $0.56 per share and revenue of $6.26 billion, beating expectations, while revenue declined 1.4% and EPS fell from $0.69 in the prior-year period.
• The company offers a sizable dividend: Kraft Heinz declared a quarterly dividend of $0.40, equal to $1.60 annually and a reported 6.6% yield. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company, while an insider recently sold 18,502 shares.

Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) has received a consensus recommendation of "Reduce" from the seventeen analysts that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. Five analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have assigned a hold rating and one has assigned a strong buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price target among brokers that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $23.3333.

A number of brokerages recently commented on KHC. TD Cowen increased their price target on Kraft Heinz from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, August 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on Kraft Heinz from $21.00 to $22.00 and gave the company an "underweight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 15th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the company an "underperform" rating in a research note on Tuesday, June 30th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $23.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, July 8th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein lowered shares of Kraft Heinz from a "market perform" rating to an "underperform" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $25.00 to $21.00 in a research note on Wednesday, June 3rd.

Insider Activity at Kraft Heinz

In other news, insider Diana Frost sold 18,502 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, June 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total transaction of $426,471.10. Following the transaction, the insider owned 102,667 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $2,366,474.35. This trade represents a 15.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.24% of the company's stock.

Institutional Trading of Kraft Heinz

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of KHC. BlackRock Inc. acquired a new position in Kraft Heinz in the second quarter worth $1,803,911,000. California State Teachers Retirement System raised its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 2,805.5% during the second quarter. California State Teachers Retirement System now owns 38,073,220 shares of the company's stock worth $899,289,000 after purchasing an additional 36,762,849 shares during the period. Auto Owners Insurance Co raised its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 3,034.1% during the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 16,477,002 shares of the company's stock worth $39,957,000 after purchasing an additional 15,951,271 shares during the period. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 4th quarter worth about $332,382,000. Finally, Nykredit A S bought a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 2nd quarter worth about $181,408,000. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

Kraft Heinz stock opened at $24.39 on Friday. Kraft Heinz has a 12-month low of $21.03 and a 12-month high of $28.09. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.49, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The company has a market capitalization of $28.92 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -8.53, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.09. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $25.47 and its 200 day moving average price is $23.97.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, August 5th. The company reported $0.56 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $0.53 by $0.03. Kraft Heinz had a negative net margin of 13.64% and a positive return on equity of 7.10%. The company had revenue of $6.26 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.18 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.69 EPS. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.4% on a year-over-year basis. Kraft Heinz has set its FY 2026 guidance at 2.030-2.090 EPS. On average, research analysts forecast that Kraft Heinz will post 2.06 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 25th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 4th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 4th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.6%. Kraft Heinz's payout ratio is presently -55.94%.

Kraft Heinz Company Profile

The Kraft Heinz Company NASDAQ: KHC is a global food and beverage company that develops, manufactures and markets branded products for consumers, retailers, foodservice operators and other customers. Its portfolio includes condiments and sauces, cheese and dairy products, meals, meats, beverages, snacks and other packaged foods.

The company's well-known brands include Kraft, Heinz, Oscar Mayer, Philadelphia, Velveeta, Lunchables, Capri Sun, Jell-O, Maxwell House and Classico, among others.

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