Assenagon Asset Management S.A. Trims Stock Holdings in Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)

Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lowered its stake in Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC - Free Report) by 93.1% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 88,140 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,185,439 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A.'s holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $2,682,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz during the fourth quarter worth $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. acquired a new stake in Kraft Heinz during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the fourth quarter valued at $36,000. Pinney & Scofield Inc. bought a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Kennondale Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz during the fourth quarter worth approximately $45,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 78.17% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

KHC has been the subject of several research reports. Sanford C. Bernstein downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $34.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Stifel Nicolaus reduced their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $31.00 to $30.00 and set a "hold" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, April 30th. Morgan Stanley assumed coverage on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Monday, March 24th. They issued an "underweight" rating and a $29.00 target price on the stock. DZ Bank downgraded Kraft Heinz from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and set a $31.00 price target for the company. in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised Kraft Heinz from a "sell" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Four equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and fifteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $30.35.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

Shares of Kraft Heinz stock traded down $0.07 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, hitting $25.68. 12,392,718 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 9,621,145. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $27.86 and a 200 day simple moving average of $29.32. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.42, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.31. Kraft Heinz Company has a 12 month low of $25.53 and a 12 month high of $36.53. The company has a market capitalization of $30.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 8.61, a P/E/G ratio of 3.01 and a beta of 0.27.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 29th. The company reported $0.62 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.60 by $0.02. Kraft Heinz had a net margin of 10.44% and a return on equity of 7.37%. The company had revenue of $6 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.02 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $0.69 EPS. Kraft Heinz's quarterly revenue was down 6.4% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts anticipate that Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, May 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, May 30th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.23%. Kraft Heinz's payout ratio is currently 73.06%.

Kraft Heinz Company Profile

The Kraft Heinz Company, together with its subsidiaries, manufactures and markets food and beverage products in North America and internationally. Its products include condiments and sauces, cheese and dairy products, meals, meats, refreshment beverages, coffee, and other grocery products under the Kraft, Oscar Mayer, Heinz, Philadelphia, Lunchables, Velveeta, Ore-Ida, Maxwell House, Kool-Aid, Jell-O, Heinz, ABC, Master, Quero, Kraft, Golden Circle, Wattie's, Pudliszki, and Plasmon brands.