Investors should brace for a cut

Article Excerpt

KRAFT HEINZ CO. $29 is still a hold. The company (Nasdaq symbol KHC, Conservative-Growth Dividend Payer Portfolio; Consumer sector; Shares outstanding: 1.2 billion; Market cap: $34.8 billion; Dividend yield: 5.5%; Dividend Sustainability Rating: Average; www.kraftheinzcompany.com) is a leading maker of processed foods. Top products include Velveeta and Philadelphia cream cheeses, hot dogs under the Oscar Meyer brand, and beverages such as Maxwell House coffee. Kraft Heinz cut your quarterly dividend by 36.5% with the March 2019 payment, to $0.40 a share from $0.63. The new annual rate of $1.60 still gives you a high 5.5% yield. The lower dividend is mainly because slowing sales of its core products have forced the company to write down some of its legacy brands. However, due to the COVID-19 shutdown, the company is now seeing strong demand for its products as consumers stock up on basic foodstuff (a trend known as “pantry loading”). Despite the uptick in sales, higher costs to satisfy the higher demand will offset those gains. As well,…