Kraft Heinz: Even With a Pending C-Suite Switch, Strategic Sea Change Unlikely; Shares Attractive

After nearly five years at the helm, no-moat Kraft Heinz announced CEO Miguel Patricio will step down in January, with Carlos Abrams-Rivera—who joined the firm in 2020 and currently serves as executive vice president and president of North America—poised to take the reins. Patricio will continue to serve as executive chairman to ensure a smooth transition. Abrams-Rivera boasts an extensive career in the consumer packaged goods industry, with time spent at wide-moats Campbell Soup and Mondelez, and strikes us as a sound fit for the role. And because he has been intimately involved in scripting and executing the firm’s strategic playbook (anchored in upping the ante on brand spending and bolstering its category management and e-commerce capabilities), we don’t expect Kraft Heinz will veer off its current course under his watch. Our Standard capital allocation rating remains in place.