The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) Just Released Its First-Quarter Earnings: Here's What Analysts Think

Last week, you might have seen that The Kraft Heinz Company (NASDAQ:KHC) released its quarterly result to the market. The early response was not positive, with shares down 4.7% to US$36.35 in the past week. Revenues of US$6.4b were in line with forecasts, although statutory earnings per share (EPS) came in below expectations at US$0.66, missing estimates by 4.3%. Following the result, the analysts have updated their earnings model, and it would be good to know whether they think there's been a strong change in the company's prospects, or if it's business as usual. Readers will be glad to know we've aggregated the latest statutory forecasts to see whether the analysts have changed their mind on Kraft Heinz after the latest results.

View our latest analysis for Kraft Heinz

Following last week's earnings report, Kraft Heinz's 18 analysts are forecasting 2024 revenues to be US$26.7b, approximately in line with the last 12 months. Per-share earnings are expected to bounce 30% to US$3.02. In the lead-up to this report, the analysts had been modelling revenues of US$26.8b and earnings per share (EPS) of US$3.03 in 2024. So it's pretty clear that, although the analysts have updated their estimates, there's been no major change in expectations for the business following the latest results.

There were no changes to revenue or earnings estimates or the price target of US$40.33, suggesting that the company has met expectations in its recent result. The consensus price target is just an average of individual analyst targets, so - it could be handy to see how wide the range of underlying estimates is. There are some variant perceptions on Kraft Heinz, with the most bullish analyst valuing it at US$54.00 and the most bearish at US$35.00 per share. Analysts definitely have varying views on the business, but the spread of estimates is not wide enough in our view to suggest that extreme outcomes could await Kraft Heinz shareholders.

Taking a look at the bigger picture now, one of the ways we can understand these forecasts is to see how they compare to both past performance and industry growth estimates. We would highlight that Kraft Heinz's revenue growth is expected to slow, with the forecast 0.8% annualised growth rate until the end of 2024 being well below the historical 1.1% p.a. growth over the last five years. Compare this against other companies (with analyst forecasts) in the industry, which are in aggregate expected to see revenue growth of 2.8% annually. So it's pretty clear that, while revenue growth is expected to slow down, the wider industry is also expected to grow faster than Kraft Heinz.

The Bottom Line

The most important thing to take away is that there's been no major change in sentiment, with the analysts reconfirming that the business is performing in line with their previous earnings per share estimates. On the plus side, there were no major changes to revenue estimates; although forecasts imply they will perform worse than the wider industry. There was no real change to the consensus price target, suggesting that the intrinsic value of the business has not undergone any major changes with the latest estimates.

With that said, the long-term trajectory of the company's earnings is a lot more important than next year. We have estimates - from multiple Kraft Heinz analysts - going out to 2026, and you can see them free on our platform here.

That said, it's still necessary to consider the ever-present spectre of investment risk. We've identified 2 warning signs with Kraft Heinz , and understanding these should be part of your investment process.

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This article by Simply Wall St is general in nature. We provide commentary based on historical data and analyst forecasts only using an unbiased methodology and our articles are not intended to be financial advice. It does not constitute a recommendation to buy or sell any stock, and does not take account of your objectives, or your financial situation. We aim to bring you long-term focused analysis driven by fundamental data. Note that our analysis may not factor in the latest price-sensitive company announcements or qualitative material. Simply Wall St has no position in any stocks mentioned.