Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) Downgraded by StockNews.com to “Sell”

StockNews.com cut shares of Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) from a hold rating to a sell rating in a research report released on Friday.

KHC has been the subject of several other research reports. TD Cowen reduced their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $34.00 to $28.00 in a research note on Thursday. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $32.00 to $28.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday. Bank of America downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to an “underperform” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $36.00 to $30.00 in a research note on Thursday. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Three analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kraft Heinz presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $30.86.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

NASDAQ KHC opened at $28.92 on Friday. Kraft Heinz has a 52-week low of $27.25 and a 52-week high of $38.96. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.77. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a current ratio of 1.06. The company has a market capitalization of $34.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.47.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.06. Kraft Heinz had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 7.46%. On average, research analysts predict that Kraft Heinz will post 3 EPS for the current year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.53%. Kraft Heinz’s payout ratio is presently 144.14%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On Kraft Heinz

Hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. AMF Tjanstepension AB lifted its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 143.4% in the 3rd quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 245,522 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,620,000 after acquiring an additional 144,646 shares during the last quarter. CX Institutional bought a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $340,000. SPC Financial Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 6.3% in the 3rd quarter. SPC Financial Inc. now owns 13,835 shares of the company’s stock worth $486,000 after acquiring an additional 825 shares during the last quarter. Bfsg LLC bought a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $1,476,000. Finally, Bleakley Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 4.2% in the 3rd quarter. Bleakley Financial Group LLC now owns 18,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $663,000 after acquiring an additional 758 shares during the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.