Sterling Capital Management LLC Decreases Stock Position in Kraft Heinz Company $KHC

Sterling Capital Management LLC trimmed its position in shares of Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) by 40.9% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 29,903 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,716 shares during the period. Sterling Capital Management LLC’s holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $673,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz during the first quarter worth about $207,000. Woodline Partners LP boosted its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 39.0% in the first quarter. Woodline Partners LP now owns 73,700 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,243,000 after purchasing an additional 20,690 shares during the last quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC grew its stake in Kraft Heinz by 16.6% during the 2nd quarter. NewEdge Advisors LLC now owns 51,222 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,323,000 after purchasing an additional 7,307 shares in the last quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company increased its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 0.8% during the 2nd quarter. The Manufacturers Life Insurance Company now owns 522,147 shares of the company’s stock worth $13,482,000 after purchasing an additional 4,003 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HUB Investment Partners LLC purchased a new stake in Kraft Heinz during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $207,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Kraft Heinz News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting Kraft Heinz this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Kraft Heinz’s new global reorganization took effect July 1, consolidating operations into three regional hubs and combining procurement and supply chain functions. Investors may see the move as a way to improve efficiency, speed decision-making, and support margins. Kraft Heinz (KHC) Is Up 5.1% After Global Reorganization Into Three Regional Operating Hubs
• Positive Sentiment: Recent coverage suggests the stock has bounced from recent lows and may be attracting value-focused buyers after a period of weak longer-term performance. Kraft Heinz (KHC) Stock After Recent Bounce Is The Price Now Attractive
• Neutral Sentiment: Articles revisiting Warren Buffett’s long-held Berkshire Hathaway stake keep Kraft Heinz in the spotlight, but this is more of a reminder of its legacy ownership than a new fundamental catalyst. Warren Buffett’s Berkshire Hathaway Has Held The Kraft Heinz Company (KHC) Since 2015
• Negative Sentiment: Bernstein maintained a sell rating on Kraft Heinz, signaling continued analyst concern about the stock’s outlook. Bernstein Keeps Their Sell Rating on Kraft Heinz (KHC)
• Negative Sentiment: New commentary says Kraft Heinz’s bet that inflation had peaked may be too optimistic, with July 4 grocery and cookout prices still reflecting elevated food costs. That could pressure margins and challenge the company’s pricing strategy. Kraft Heinz bet inflation peaked, but July 4 grocery bills show otherwise
• Negative Sentiment: Another article argues there are multiple reasons to sell KHC, noting the stock has lagged broader market performance this year. 3 Reasons to Sell KHC and 1 Stock to Buy Instead

Kraft Heinz Trading Up 5.9%

Shares of NASDAQ:KHC opened at $25.01 on Thursday. The company has a 50 day moving average of $23.25 and a 200-day moving average of $23.44. The company has a current ratio of 1.20, a quick ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market cap of $29.66 billion, a P/E ratio of -5.15 and a beta of 0.09. Kraft Heinz Company has a twelve month low of $21.03 and a twelve month high of $29.19.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, May 6th. The company reported $0.58 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.50 by $0.08. Kraft Heinz had a negative net margin of 23.05% and a positive return on equity of 7.26%. The business had revenue of $6.05 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $5.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $0.62 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. Kraft Heinz has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.100 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.07 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, June 26th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were issued a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.4%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 5th. Kraft Heinz’s payout ratio is presently -32.92%.

Insider Activity

In other Kraft Heinz news, insider Diana Frost sold 18,502 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, June 18th. The stock was sold at an average price of $23.05, for a total value of $426,471.10. Following the transaction, the insider owned 102,667 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,366,474.35. This represents a 15.27% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. 0.24% of the stock is owned by corporate insiders.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently commented on KHC shares. Piper Sandler increased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $23.00 to $24.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Thursday, June 25th. BTIG Research assumed coverage on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Monday, April 13th. They set a “neutral” rating on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $20.00 to $22.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 7th. BNP Paribas Exane increased their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $17.00 to $19.00 and gave the stock an “underperform” rating in a research note on Tuesday. Finally, Sanford C. Bernstein cut shares of Kraft Heinz from a “market perform” rating to an “underperform” rating and cut their target price for the stock from $25.00 to $21.00 in a report on Wednesday, June 3rd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and five have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, Kraft Heinz presently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average target price of $22.88.

About Kraft Heinz

The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ: KHC) is a global food and beverage company formed in 2015 through the merger of Kraft Foods Group and H.J. Heinz Company. The combination created one of the largest packaged-food companies in the world, built around well-known consumer brands. The merger was supported by major investors and established a multi-national platform for branded food products.

Kraft Heinz develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad portfolio of branded packaged foods and condiments.