Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) Stock Price Up 5.1% - Still a Buy?

The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) shares traded up 5.1% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $32.48 and last traded at $32.47. 5,555,799 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 45% from the average session volume of 10,083,079 shares. The stock had previously closed at $30.88.

Analyst Ratings Changes

KHC has been the subject of several analyst reports. Evercore ISI restated an "in-line" rating and set a $35.00 price target (down from $38.00) on shares of Kraft Heinz in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Stifel Nicolaus dropped their target price on Kraft Heinz from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $30.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 29th. Mizuho cut Kraft Heinz from an "outperform" rating to a "neutral" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $38.00 to $31.00 in a research report on Monday, February 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on Kraft Heinz from $32.00 to $31.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 13th. Three equities research analysts have rated the stock with a sell rating and twelve have given a hold rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $30.86.

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Kraft Heinz Price Performance

The firm has a 50 day moving average of $29.85 and a 200-day moving average of $32.29. The company has a market cap of $38.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 14.24, a P/E/G ratio of 3.39 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 1.06, a quick ratio of 0.59 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Wednesday, February 12th. The company reported $0.84 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $0.78 by $0.06. Kraft Heinz had a return on equity of 7.58% and a net margin of 10.62%. On average, equities research analysts predict that The Kraft Heinz Company will post 2.68 EPS for the current year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $0.40 dividend. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. Kraft Heinz's payout ratio is 70.80%.

Institutional Trading of Kraft Heinz

Large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ashton Thomas Securities LLC bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $27,000. Sawyer & Company Inc bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the 4th quarter worth approximately $25,000. Generali Investments Management Co LLC bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the 4th quarter worth approximately $26,000. Mountain Hill Investment Partners Corp. bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Finally, Capital Performance Advisors LLP bought a new stake in Kraft Heinz in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company's stock.

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.