The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) Short Interest Update

The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in the month of October. As of October 31st, there was short interest totalling 37,660,000 shares, an increase of 11.6% from the October 15th total of 33,760,000 shares. Approximately 3.1% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily volume of 7,170,000 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is presently 5.3 days.

Insider Activity

In other Kraft Heinz news, EVP Pedro F. P. Navio sold 45,000 shares of the firm’s 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 transaction, the executive vice president now owns 168,195 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,626,122.75. This trade represents a 21.11 % decrease in their position. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Kraft Heinz

A number of institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in KHC. Fortitude Family Office LLC boosted its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 249.5% in the 3rd quarter. Fortitude Family Office LLC now owns 741 shares of the company’s stock worth $26,000 after acquiring an additional 529 shares during the period. New Covenant Trust Company N.A. acquired a new position in Kraft Heinz in the 1st quarter worth $27,000. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC purchased a new position in Kraft Heinz in the 3rd quarter valued at about $27,000. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. grew its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 1,077.0% during the third quarter. DiNuzzo Private Wealth Inc. now owns 871 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 797 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Asset Dedication LLC lifted its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 94.8% in the second quarter. Asset Dedication LLC now owns 978 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 476 shares in the last quarter. 78.17% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently weighed in on KHC. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and dropped their price target for the company from $39.00 to $35.00 in a research note on Thursday, October 31st. The Goldman Sachs Group reduced their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $32.00 and set a “sell” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Stifel Nicolaus cut Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $40.00 to $38.00 in a report on Friday, October 25th. Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $39.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 31st. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 31st. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, five have issued a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, Kraft Heinz has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $37.00.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

KHC stock traded down $0.07 during trading on Monday, hitting $31.07. The company had a trading volume of 10,882,852 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,879,178. Kraft Heinz has a 1-year low of $30.40 and a 1-year high of $38.96. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $34.53 and a 200-day moving average price of $34.42. The company has a quick ratio of 0.56, a current ratio of 1.06 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.40. The firm has a market cap of $37.57 billion, a PE ratio of 28.05, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.56 and a beta of 0.49.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 30th. The company reported $0.75 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.74 by $0.01. Kraft Heinz had a net margin of 5.24% and a return on equity of 7.46%. The business had revenue of $6.38 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.42 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business posted $0.72 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was down 2.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts expect that Kraft Heinz will post 3.01 earnings per share for the current year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 27th. Investors of record on Friday, November 29th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, November 29th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 5.15%. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio is presently 144.14%.

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.