Kraft Heinz exploring sale of Oscar Mayer brand that could be worth up to $5 billion: Wall Street Journal
By Ciara Linnane
Company has hired financial advisers to help review a sale of the cold-meats brand
Kraft Heinz Co. has hired financial advisers to help explore a possible sale of its Oscar Mayer unit, which makes hot dogs, cold cuts and bacon, the Wall Street Journal reported Monday, citing people familiar with the matter.
The business could be worth $3 billion to $5 billion, the people said. The company has hired Bank of America (BAC) and Centerview Partners to work on the process, with potential buyers including private-equity firms or other food companies.
Kraft (KHC) - which has a new chief executive in Carlos Abrams-Rivera, who took on the role on Jan. 1 - is working to overhaul its portfolio as consumers become more health- and budget-conscious.
Abrams-Rivera is also under pressure to boost the company's stock price, which has been little changed for the last five years.
The company is seeking to make supermarket staples like its ketchup and fruit drinks more nutritious amid a pushback on processed foods and as increasing levels of obesity and other chronic illnesses are linked to diet.
The parent to brands including Lunchables, Maxwell House, Jell-O and Velveeta announced Abrams-Rivera as CEO last summer. He had previously run its North America operations.
The company posted first-quarter earnings on May 1 that only matched profit expectations and fell shy on sales again. Sales declined as prices increased at the lowest rate since the third quarter of 2021, while volume and mix declined at the lowest rate since the second quarter of 2022.
The stock was up 0.6% Monday but is down 1.4% in the year to date, while the S&P 500 SPX has gained 9.5%.
-Ciara Linnane
This content was created by MarketWatch, which is operated by Dow Jones & Co. MarketWatch is published independently from Dow Jones Newswires and The Wall Street Journal.
(END) Dow Jones Newswires
05-13-24 1346ET
Copyright (c) 2024 Dow Jones & Company, Inc.-
These Stocks Are (Still) Powering the Bull Market
-
5 Undervalued Energy Stocks to Play the AI Data Center Demand Boom
-
After Earnings, Is Lowe’s Stock a Buy, Sell, or Fairly Valued?
-
5 Stocks With the Largest Fair Value Estimate Cuts After Q1 Earnings
-
10 Stocks With the Largest Fair Value Estimate Increases After Q1 Earnings
-
Markets Brief: Inflation Back in the Spotlight
-
AI Is Booming, but Consumer Spending Is Slowing. Which Will Prevail in the Stock Market?
-
What’s Happening In the Markets This Week
-
3 Dividend Stocks for June 2024
-
After Earnings, Is Alibaba Stock a Buy, Sell, or Fairly Valued?
-
MongoDB Earnings: Slashing Valuation as Execution and Macro to Blame for Lower Guidance
-
Marvell Earnings: We Raise Our Medium-Term AI Forecast and Bring Our Valuation Up to $75
-
Zscaler Earnings: Impressive Traction in Emerging Products Drives Sales Growth for the Quarter
-
Dell Earnings: Raising Valuation on Strong AI, but the Stock Remains Severely Overvalued
-
After Earnings, Is Nvidia Stock a Buy, Sell, or Fairly Valued?
-
The 10 Best Companies to Invest in Now