Royal London Asset Management Ltd. Boosts Stake in The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)

Royal London Asset Management Ltd. grew its stake in shares of The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) by 8.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,954,366 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 159,093 shares during the quarter. Royal London Asset Management Ltd.’s holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $60,019,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in KHC. New York Life Investment Management LLC raised its position in Kraft Heinz by 0.3% in the 4th quarter. New York Life Investment Management LLC now owns 130,075 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,995,000 after purchasing an additional 361 shares during the period. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC raised its position in Kraft Heinz by 5.3% in the 4th quarter. Checchi Capital Advisers LLC now owns 7,265 shares of the company’s stock worth $223,000 after purchasing an additional 366 shares during the period. Winch Advisory Services LLC raised its position in Kraft Heinz by 20.1% in the 4th quarter. Winch Advisory Services LLC now owns 2,274 shares of the company’s stock worth $70,000 after purchasing an additional 380 shares during the period. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC raised its position in Kraft Heinz by 5.0% in the 4th quarter. Cohen Investment Advisors LLC now owns 10,266 shares of the company’s stock worth $315,000 after purchasing an additional 487 shares during the period. Finally, LMG Wealth Partners LLC grew its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC now owns 37,040 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,137,000 after acquiring an additional 498 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Kraft Heinz Trading Down 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ KHC opened at $29.71 on Friday. The Kraft Heinz Company has a 1 year low of $27.25 and a 1 year high of $38.96. The stock has a market cap of $35.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 13.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.40. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $29.90 and a 200 day moving average of $32.00. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.59.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.78 by $0.06. Kraft Heinz had a net margin of 10.62% and a return on equity of 7.58%. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that The Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.39%. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 70.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KHC has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Barclays cut their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $33.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Friday, February 14th. Citigroup lowered shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and cut their price target for the stock from $34.00 to $28.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Finally, Piper Sandler cut their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $35.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Two equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have issued a hold rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kraft Heinz has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $30.86.

Kraft Heinz 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.