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

Key Points

• Analyst sentiment is cautious: Kraft Heinz has a consensus rating of "Reduce" from 19 analysts, with five sell ratings, 13 hold ratings, and only one strong buy. The average 12-month price target is $22.75, below the recent trading level.
• Recent results topped expectations: In its latest quarterly earnings report, Kraft Heinz posted $0.58 EPS versus the $0.50 estimate and revenue of $6.05 billion versus the $5.89 billion forecast. The company also guided FY 2026 EPS at 1.98 to 2.10.
• The stock offers a high dividend yield: Kraft Heinz recently paid a quarterly dividend of $0.40 per share, or $1.60 annually, which works out to a yield of about 6.7%. The article also noted an insider sale by Diana Frost and that institutional investors hold most of the shares.

Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) has been given an average rating of "Reduce" by the nineteen analysts that are presently covering the stock, MarketBeat Ratings reports. Five investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have issued a hold rating and one has given a strong buy rating to the company. The average 12 month price objective among analysts that have updated their coverage on the stock in the last year is $22.75.

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on KHC shares. BTIG Research started coverage on Kraft Heinz in a research note on Monday, April 13th. They issued a "neutral" rating on the stock. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on Kraft Heinz from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research note on Thursday. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on Kraft Heinz from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. Wall Street Zen lowered Kraft Heinz from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Sunday, May 31st. Finally, Morgan Stanley set a $22.00 price target on Kraft Heinz in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd.

Kraft Heinz Trading Up 1.1%

KHC stock opened at $23.72 on Friday. Kraft Heinz has a 1-year low of $21.03 and a 1-year high of $29.19. The firm has a market cap of $28.13 billion, a P/E ratio of -4.88 and a beta of 0.08. The business's 50 day moving average is $23.14 and its 200-day moving average is $23.45. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.58 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.50 by $0.08. Kraft Heinz had a positive return on equity of 7.26% and a negative net margin of 23.05%.The company had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $0.62 EPS. The company's 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. Equities analysts anticipate that Kraft Heinz will post 2.07 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.7%. Kraft Heinz's dividend payout ratio is -32.92%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, insider Diana Frost sold 18,502 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total transaction of $426,471.10. Following the sale, the insider directly owned 102,667 shares in the company, valued at $2,366,474.35. This represents a 15.27% decrease in their position. The transaction 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.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kraft Heinz

A number of large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KHC. Graney & King LLC boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 20.5% in the 4th quarter. Graney & King LLC now owns 2,560 shares of the company's stock valued at $62,000 after buying an additional 435 shares during the last quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 3.2% in the 4th quarter. V Square Quantitative Management LLC now owns 14,892 shares of the company's stock valued at $361,000 after buying an additional 458 shares during the last quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 1.7% in the 4th quarter. Tokio Marine Asset Management Co. Ltd. now owns 29,623 shares of the company's stock valued at $718,000 after buying an additional 490 shares during the last quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 70.2% in the 4th quarter. New England Capital Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,239 shares of the company's stock valued at $30,000 after buying an additional 511 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 6.6% in the 4th quarter. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators now owns 8,281 shares of the company's stock valued at $201,000 after buying an additional 515 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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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