Traders Purchase High Volume of Kraft Heinz Call Options (NASDAQ:KHC)

Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) saw unusually large options trading activity on Tuesday. Stock traders purchased 52,568 call options on the stock. This is an increase of 97% compared to the typical daily volume of 26,713 call options.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of KHC. Rakuten Securities Inc. grew its holdings in Kraft Heinz by 172.4% during the second quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 1,245 shares of the company’s stock worth $32,000 after acquiring an additional 788 shares during the period. Anfield Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 256.7% in the 3rd quarter. Anfield Capital Management LLC now owns 1,270 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 914 shares during the last quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. raised its position in shares of Kraft Heinz by 164.7% during the second quarter. Cape Investment Advisory Inc. now owns 1,297 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 807 shares during the period. Banque Transatlantique SA purchased a new stake in shares of Kraft Heinz during the first quarter valued at $40,000. Finally, Mid American Wealth Advisory Group Inc. acquired a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz in the 2nd quarter valued at $39,000. Institutional investors own 78.17% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on KHC shares. Barclays reduced their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $26.00 to $24.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $28.00 to $27.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, October 30th. Stifel Nicolaus decreased their target price on Kraft Heinz from $30.00 to $28.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, September 3rd. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $27.00 to $26.00 in a report on Thursday, October 30th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on Kraft Heinz from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, October 30th. One research 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 data from MarketBeat.com, Kraft Heinz currently has an average rating of “Reduce” and a consensus target price of $26.63.

Kraft Heinz Stock Performance

Shares of KHC stock opened at $24.68 on Wednesday. The company has a market cap of $29.21 billion, a P/E ratio of -6.62 and a beta of 0.09. Kraft Heinz has a 52 week low of $23.70 and a 52 week high of $33.35. The company has a quick ratio of 0.73, a current ratio of 1.13 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46. The business has a 50 day moving average of $24.91 and a two-hundred day moving average of $26.18.

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

Kraft Heinz Cuts Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, December 26th. Stockholders of record on Friday, November 28th will be given a dividend of $0.40 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, November 28th. This represents a $1.60 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 6.5%. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio is currently -42.90%.

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.