Cooke & Bieler LP Buys 153,490 Shares of The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC)

Cooke & Bieler LP lifted its holdings in The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) by 4.7% during the second quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 3,402,510 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 153,490 shares during the period. Cooke & Bieler LP owned approximately 0.28% of Kraft Heinz worth $109,629,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the business. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas boosted its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 4.1% in the 2nd quarter. Community Bank & Trust Waco Texas now owns 52,045 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,677,000 after buying an additional 2,053 shares during the last quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC lifted its stake in Kraft Heinz by 18.7% in the second quarter. Foundations Investment Advisors LLC now owns 19,483 shares of the company’s stock valued at $628,000 after purchasing an additional 3,071 shares during the last quarter. LMG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in Kraft Heinz in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,048,000. CM Management LLC purchased a new position in Kraft Heinz in the second quarter valued at approximately $806,000. Finally, Rhumbline Advisers lifted its stake in Kraft Heinz by 0.7% in the second quarter. Rhumbline Advisers now owns 1,828,000 shares of the company’s stock valued at $58,898,000 after purchasing an additional 12,959 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Kraft Heinz Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ KHC traded up $0.44 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $36.03. 1,723,091 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,914,463. The Kraft Heinz Company has a 52 week low of $30.68 and a 52 week high of $38.96. The company’s 50 day moving average price is $33.92 and its 200 day moving average price is $35.05. The stock has a market capitalization of $43.75 billion, a PE ratio of 15.54, a PEG ratio of 3.32 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a quick ratio of 0.53, a current ratio of 1.01 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, July 31st. The company reported $0.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.73 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $6.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $6.55 billion. Kraft Heinz had a return on equity of 7.38% and a net margin of 7.30%. The company’s revenue was down 3.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $0.79 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that The Kraft Heinz Company will post 3.02 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, September 27th. Shareholders of record on Friday, August 30th will be paid a dividend of $0.40 per share. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.44%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, August 30th. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 69.87%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently commented on KHC shares. Piper Sandler dropped their price objective on Kraft Heinz from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, June 20th. Barclays upped their price objective on Kraft Heinz from $34.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Thursday, August 1st. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $38.00 to $37.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $42.00 to $38.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 17th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their target price on shares of Kraft Heinz from $43.00 to $39.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, July 31st. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, seven have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $37.31.

Insider Transactions at Kraft Heinz

In related news, insider Cory Onell sold 4,076 shares of Kraft Heinz stock in a transaction on Friday, August 2nd. The shares were sold at an average price of $36.00, for a total value of $146,736.00. Following the transaction, the insider now owns 143,970 shares in the company, valued at approximately $5,182,920. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through the SEC website. Company insiders own 0.32% of the company’s stock.

Kraft Heinz 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.