Stock Traders Buy Large Volume of Kraft Heinz Call Options (NASDAQ:KHC)

Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) was the target of some unusual options trading activity on Thursday. Traders bought 53,819 call options on the company. This is an increase of approximately 87% compared to the average volume of 28,777 call options.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently commented on KHC. The Goldman Sachs Group set a $23.00 price target on Kraft Heinz in a research report on Thursday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. downgraded shares of Kraft Heinz from a “neutral” rating to an “underweight” rating and reduced their target price for the stock from $24.00 to $22.00 in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Evercore lowered their price target on shares of Kraft Heinz from $25.00 to $22.00 in a report on Thursday, February 12th. Mizuho cut their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $27.00 to $25.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 23rd. Finally, UBS Group boosted their price objective on shares of Kraft Heinz from $24.00 to $25.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Friday, February 13th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, fourteen have given a Hold rating and six have issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Kraft Heinz currently has a consensus rating of “Reduce” and an average price target of $24.89.

Kraft Heinz Price Performance

NASDAQ KHC opened at $24.23 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $28.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of -4.90 and a beta of 0.06. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.46, a current ratio of 1.15 and a quick ratio of 0.79. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $24.01 and its 200 day moving average price is $25.02. Kraft Heinz has a 1 year low of $21.99 and a 1 year high of $33.35.

Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, February 11th. The company reported $0.67 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $0.61 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $6.35 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $6.38 billion. Kraft Heinz had a positive return on equity of 7.07% and a negative net margin of 23.44%.The firm’s revenue was down 3.4% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $0.84 EPS. Kraft Heinz has set its FY 2026 guidance at 1.980-2.100 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that Kraft Heinz will post 2.68 earnings per share for the current year.

Kraft Heinz Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, March 27th. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a $0.40 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $1.60 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 6.6%. Kraft Heinz’s dividend payout ratio is currently -32.39%.

Insider Activity

In related news, insider Miguel Patricio sold 125,000 shares of Kraft Heinz stock in a transaction that occurred on Wednesday, December 17th. The shares were sold at an average price of $24.82, for a total transaction of $3,102,500.00. Following the transaction, the insider directly owned 686,817 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $17,046,797.94. This trade represents a 15.40% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this link. Also, insider Cory Onell sold 4,991 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Tuesday, March 3rd. The stock was sold at an average price of $24.34, for a total value of $121,480.94. Following the sale, the insider owned 197,463 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $4,806,249.42. This represents a 2.47% decrease in their position. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 139,036 shares of company stock valued at $3,446,578. Company insiders own 0.35% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kraft Heinz

Several institutional investors and hedge funds have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of Kraft Heinz during the fourth quarter worth $332,382,000. Nordea Investment Management AB grew its position in Kraft Heinz by 75.1% during the 3rd quarter. Nordea Investment Management AB now owns 13,694,483 shares of the company’s stock worth $351,263,000 after purchasing an additional 5,873,967 shares during the period. Barclays PLC grew its position in Kraft Heinz by 77.8% during the 4th quarter. Barclays PLC now owns 8,973,146 shares of the company’s stock worth $217,599,000 after purchasing an additional 3,926,141 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC raised its stake in shares of Kraft Heinz by 14.7% during the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 26,446,203 shares of the company’s stock valued at $681,663,000 after buying an additional 3,392,470 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of Kraft Heinz by 10.5% in the 4th quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 19,725,662 shares of the company’s stock valued at $478,347,000 after buying an additional 1,870,310 shares during the period. 78.17% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Key Kraft Heinz News

Here are the key news stories impacting Kraft Heinz this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire Hathaway (large KHC holder) says it has no immediate plans to sell its Kraft Heinz stake, signaling reduced near‑term selling pressure from a marquee investor. Berkshire Hathaway has no immediate plans on its Kraft Heinz stake – report
• Positive Sentiment: Berkshire’s new CEO Greg Abel publicly supported Kraft Heinz’s decision to pause the planned split, and Berkshire resumed its own buybacks — both factors can be read as stabilizing signals for investors. Berkshire Hathaway resumes buybacks and CEO supports Kraft’s decision to pause its split
• Positive Sentiment: Unusually large call‑option activity—about 53,819 calls traded (≈+87% vs. average)—indicates bullish speculative interest that can amplify intraday upside. (Options flow report)
• Positive Sentiment: The board declared a $0.40 quarterly dividend (6.6% yield), which supports income‑oriented demand for the shares. Kraft Heinz company page
• Neutral Sentiment: Kraft Heinz CEO Steve Cahillane has paused the planned corporate split and redirected $600M toward new products and selective price cuts — a strategic shift that could boost volumes long‑term but pressures near‑term margins and creates execution risk. Berkshire Has No Plans for Kraft Heinz Stake With Split Halted
• Negative Sentiment: Insider selling: Senior employee Cory Onell sold multiple blocks (most recently ~4,991 shares at ~$24.34), which can create a perception of reduced insider confidence. SEC filing: Insider Form 4
• Negative Sentiment: Analyst sentiment remains weak overall — multiple recent downgrades and a consensus “Reduce” with an average price target near $24.89 keep longer‑term upside constrained unless fundamentals improve. MarketBeat KHC coverage

Kraft Heinz Company Profile

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.