Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) Rating Lowered to “Neutral” at Citigroup

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) was downgraded by research analysts at Citigroup from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating in a research note issued on Thursday, Marketbeat reports. They presently have a $28.00 price target on the stock, down from their previous price target of $34.00. Citigroup’s price objective would suggest a potential downside of 3.18% from the stock’s current price.

Other research analysts have also recently issued reports about the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Barclays decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $36.00 to $35.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, November 1st. Evercore ISI reissued an “in-line” rating and issued a $35.00 target price (down from $38.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $36.00 to $32.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 31st. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “sell” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. Three investment analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.86.

Kraft Heinz Trading Down 1.1 %

NASDAQ KHC opened at $28.92 on Thursday. The stock has a 50-day simple moving average of $29.94 and a 200 day simple moving average of $32.77. The company has a market capitalization of $34.97 billion, a PE ratio of 26.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.74 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.56 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. Kraft Heinz has a 12 month low of $27.25 and a 12 month high of $38.96.

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

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several large investors have recently bought and sold shares of KHC. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 143.4% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 245,522 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,620,000 after purchasing an additional 144,646 shares during the last quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt raised its stake in Kraft Heinz by 221.5% in the third quarter. Livforsakringsbolaget Skandia Omsesidigt now owns 1,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $36,000 after buying an additional 700 shares during the period. CX Institutional bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the third quarter valued at approximately $340,000. Wesbanco Bank Inc. raised its stake in Kraft Heinz by 17.3% in the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 11,281 shares of the company’s stock valued at $396,000 after buying an additional 1,665 shares during the period. Finally, Swedbank AB raised its stake in Kraft Heinz by 6.9% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 775,689 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,234,000 after buying an additional 50,063 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.