Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC Boosts Stake in The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)

Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC raised its holdings in shares of The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) by 73.2% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 108,815 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 46,000 shares during the period. Quinn Opportunity Partners LLC’s holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $3,342,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 19.9% in the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 90,508,763 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,779,524,000 after purchasing an additional 14,996,486 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its position in Kraft Heinz by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 19,745,734 shares of the company’s stock valued at $604,644,000 after purchasing an additional 595,406 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz during the 4th quarter worth $324,857,000. Nordea Investment Management AB increased its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 16.3% during the fourth quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,813,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,906,000 after buying an additional 1,238,200 shares during the period. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 5.5% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,601,292 shares of the company’s stock valued at $172,016,000 after acquiring an additional 293,694 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Kraft Heinz Price Performance

Shares of KHC stock opened at $28.84 on Friday. The Kraft Heinz Company has a fifty-two week low of $27.25 and a fifty-two week high of $38.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a current ratio of 1.06. The firm has a market capitalization of $34.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 12.76, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.44. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $29.94 and its 200-day simple moving average is $31.29.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.84 EPS for the quarter, topping 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, equities analysts forecast that The Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were given a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.55%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. Kraft Heinz’s payout ratio is 70.80%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have issued reports on KHC. TD Cowen dropped their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup reiterated a “sell” rating and set a $27.00 price objective (down from $28.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a research note on Friday, April 4th. Morgan Stanley began coverage on shares of Kraft Heinz in a research note on Monday, March 24th. They issued an “underweight” rating and a $29.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on Kraft Heinz from $31.00 to $30.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on Kraft Heinz from $33.00 to $29.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 14th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have issued a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.67.

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.