Kraft Heinz Sees Unusually High Options Volume (NASDAQ:KHC)

Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) saw unusually large options trading on Friday. Stock investors bought 52,195 call options on the stock. This represents an increase of 91% compared to the average daily volume of 27,292 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. Zacks Research downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from a “hold” rating to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, November 13th. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Weiss Ratings reissued a “sell (d)” rating on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Wednesday, October 8th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $25.00 to $27.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $27.00 to $25.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, October 30th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, seventeen have given a Hold rating and four have given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $26.63.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

NASDAQ KHC traded up $0.10 during trading on Friday, reaching $24.35. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,039,536 shares, compared to its average volume of 11,892,289. The company has a current ratio of 1.13, a quick ratio of 0.73 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The firm has a market capitalization of $28.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -6.53 and a beta of 0.09. Kraft Heinz has a 12 month low of $23.60 and a 12 month high of $33.35. The firm has a 50 day moving average price of $24.65 and a 200 day moving average price of $25.99.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last announced its earnings results on Friday, July 8th. The company reported $0.72 EPS for the quarter. Kraft Heinz had a negative net margin of 17.35% and a positive return on equity of 7.26%. The company had revenue of $6.39 billion for the quarter. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that Kraft Heinz will post 2.68 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Cuts Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, December 26th. Shareholders of record on Friday, November 28th were issued a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a yield of 6.6%. Kraft Heinz’s payout ratio is currently -42.90%.

Insider Buying and Selling at Kraft Heinz

In related news, insider Miguel Patricio sold 125,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, December 17th. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.82, for a total value of $3,102,500.00. Following the sale, the insider owned 686,817 shares in the company, valued at approximately $17,046,797.94. This represents a 15.40% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through the SEC website. Insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of KHC. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz during the third quarter valued at about $118,000. AIA Group Ltd increased its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 103.6% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 364,114 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,482,000 after buying an additional 185,291 shares during the period. Mirabella Financial Services LLP raised its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 161.3% in the 3rd quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 90,255 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,346,000 after buying an additional 55,718 shares during the last quarter. IFP Advisors Inc boosted its position in Kraft Heinz by 34.3% during the 3rd quarter. IFP Advisors Inc now owns 8,221 shares of the company’s stock worth $227,000 after buying an additional 2,100 shares during the period. Finally, Investment Research Partners LLC bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $935,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

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.