Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) Given New $31.00 Price Target at UBS Group

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) had its target price lowered by UBS Group from $37.00 to $31.00 in a research note issued to investors on Thursday morning,Benzinga reports. The brokerage currently has a neutral rating on the stock.

KHC has been the subject of a number of other research reports. TD Cowen reduced their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI reiterated an “in-line” rating and issued a $35.00 price objective (down from $38.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group lowered their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the company from $39.00 to $35.00 in a report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, Stifel Nicolaus cut shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $40.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, October 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and three have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, Kraft Heinz has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $35.23.

Kraft Heinz Price Performance

KHC opened at $29.27 on Thursday. Kraft Heinz has a 1 year low of $28.37 and a 1 year high of $38.96. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $30.80 and a 200-day moving average price of $33.21. The firm has a market cap of $35.39 billion, a PE ratio of 26.37, a P/E/G ratio of 3.29 and a beta of 0.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40, a current ratio of 1.06 and a quick ratio of 0.56.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.74 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $6.42 billion. Kraft Heinz had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 7.46%. The business’s revenue was down 2.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $0.72 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts predict that Kraft Heinz will post 3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 27th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 29th were paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.47%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, November 29th. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 144.14%.

Insider Activity at Kraft Heinz

In other Kraft Heinz news, EVP Pedro F. P. Navio sold 45,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Tuesday, November 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $33.45, for a total value of $1,505,250.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president now owns 168,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,626,122.75. This represents a 21.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. 0.37% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kraft Heinz

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Sawyer & Company Inc purchased a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz during the fourth quarter valued at about $25,000. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its stake in Kraft Heinz by 249.5% during the third quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 741 shares of the company’s stock valued at $26,000 after buying an additional 529 shares during the last quarter. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Kraft Heinz during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. increased its stake in Kraft Heinz by 1,077.0% in the 3rd quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 871 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 797 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bangor Savings Bank purchased a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $32,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

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.