AlphaQuest LLC Purchases 7,807 Shares of The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)

AlphaQuest LLC boosted its position in The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) by 390,350.0% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 7,809 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 7,807 shares during the period. AlphaQuest LLC’s holdings in Kraft Heinz were worth $240,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 11.5% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 5,307,598 shares of the company’s stock worth $186,350,000 after purchasing an additional 545,504 shares in the last quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise boosted its position in shares of Kraft Heinz by 52.5% in the third quarter. Banque Cantonale Vaudoise now owns 170,511 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,988,000 after acquiring an additional 58,665 shares during the period. Brookstone Capital Management grew its stake in Kraft Heinz by 229.8% during the fourth quarter. Brookstone Capital Management now owns 342,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $10,530,000 after acquiring an additional 238,913 shares in the last quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank lifted its stake in Kraft Heinz by 12.6% in the 3rd quarter. Toronto Dominion Bank now owns 487,938 shares of the company’s stock worth $17,132,000 after purchasing an additional 54,656 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Nordea Investment Management AB boosted its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 16.3% in the 4th quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 8,813,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $269,906,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238,200 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI reaffirmed an “in-line” rating and issued a $35.00 price target (down previously from $38.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com raised shares of Kraft Heinz from a “sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday. Citigroup downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from a “buy” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their price objective for the stock from $34.00 to $28.00 in a report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 29th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their price target on Kraft Heinz from $37.00 to $31.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Two analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and thirteen have given a hold rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $30.86.

Kraft Heinz Price Performance

KHC stock opened at $30.23 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39. The firm’s 50-day moving average price is $29.86 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $32.12. The stock has a market capitalization of $36.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 13.38, a PEG ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.40. The Kraft Heinz Company has a 12-month low of $27.25 and a 12-month high of $38.96.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 predict that The Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Kraft Heinz Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 5.29%. Kraft Heinz’s payout ratio is 70.80%.

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.