Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) Shares Sold by NorthRock Partners LLC

Key Points

• NorthRock Partners LLC reduced its stake in Kraft Heinz Company by 3.8%, owning 239,670 shares valued at $7.29 million following a sale of 9,498 shares.
• Kraft Heinz recently announced a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, translating to an annualized rate of $1.60, which results in a dividend yield of 5.62%.
• Analysts have set a consensus rating of "Hold" for Kraft Heinz, with an average target price of $30.29, amid recent downgrades and price target reductions from various brokerages.

NorthRock Partners LLC reduced its position in Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC - Free Report) by 3.8% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 239,670 shares of the company's stock after selling 9,498 shares during the quarter. NorthRock Partners LLC's holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $7,293,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the company. North Star Asset Management Inc. grew its stake in Kraft Heinz by 49.5% in the first quarter. North Star Asset Management Inc. now owns 15,818 shares of the company's stock valued at $481,000 after purchasing an additional 5,238 shares during the last quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 178.6% in the first quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 72,789 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,215,000 after buying an additional 46,666 shares during the last quarter. Bayforest Capital Ltd purchased a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the first quarter valued at approximately $314,000. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 6.1% in the first quarter. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd now owns 75,487 shares of the company's stock valued at $2,296,000 after buying an additional 4,324 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Banque Cantonale Vaudoise purchased a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the first quarter valued at approximately $3,826,000. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Kraft Heinz Stock Down 0.2%

Shares of KHC traded down $0.05 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $27.41. 16,933,701 shares of the company's stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 12,535,334. The company has a market cap of $32.44 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.10, a P/E/G ratio of 3.34 and a beta of 0.25. Kraft Heinz Company has a fifty-two week low of $25.44 and a fifty-two week high of $36.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.47, a quick ratio of 0.81 and a current ratio of 1.07. The stock's 50-day moving average is $26.84 and its 200-day moving average is $28.54.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 30th. The company reported $0.69 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.64 by $0.05. The business had revenue of $6.35 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $6.26 billion. Kraft Heinz had a negative net margin of 20.83% and a positive return on equity of 7.40%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.9% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $0.78 earnings per share. On average, 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 company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 26th. Investors of record on Friday, August 29th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 29th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.8%. Kraft Heinz's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is -35.63%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In related news, Director Elio Leoni Sceti sold 25,000 shares of the firm's stock in a transaction that occurred on Friday, July 18th. The shares were sold at an average price of $27.91, for a total value of $697,750.00. Following the sale, the director owned 40,000 shares of the company's stock, valued at $1,116,400. This trade represents a 38.46% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.35% of the stock is currently owned by company insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts have issued reports on KHC shares. The Goldman Sachs Group raised Kraft Heinz from a "sell" rating to a "neutral" rating and boosted their price target for the company from $25.00 to $27.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 25th. Mizuho set a $29.00 price target on Kraft Heinz and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Wednesday, May 28th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price target on Kraft Heinz from $27.00 to $29.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a report on Monday, July 14th. Cfra Research lowered Kraft Heinz from a "moderate buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Wednesday, April 16th. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Kraft Heinz from an "outperform" rating to a "market perform" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $34.00 to $31.00 in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Three research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and sixteen have given a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $30.35.

About Kraft Heinz

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.