Food giant Kraft Heinz sees fourth-quarter adjusted earnings, sales miss market expectations

Kraft Heinz Co. (NASDAQ:KHC) saw its shares retreat in pre-market trading as the food giant saw its adjusted fourth-quarter earnings and sales miss market expectations.

The Nasdaq-listed firm reported quarterly adjusted earnings per share of 90 US cents per share, below the consensus forecasts for 95 US cent, on sales of US$6.88bn, up from US$6.86bn a year earlier, but also below the US$6.91bn consensus.

The group’s reported fourth-quarter net income was US$8.0bn, or US$6.52 per share, up from US$944.0mln, or 77 US cents per share for the same period last year.

The firm’s US sales fell 1.1% to US$4.8bn, with volumes down 1.7 percentage points driven by distribution losses in the club channel for Planters nuts, lower shipments of natural cheese and service-related losses in cold cuts.

Kraft Heinz’s chief executive David Knopf said the company has made US$300mln in strategic investments and US$800mln in capital expenditures to improve the business since the US tax overhaul was put in place.

In pre-market trading in New York, Kraft Heinz shares were down 1.2% at US$71.85.

Story by ProactiveInvestors