Kraft Heinz (NASDAQ:KHC) moved higher in premarket trading after reporting first-quarter results that came in ahead of Wall Street expectations.
Adjusted earnings per share reached $0.58, beating analyst forecasts of $0.50 by $0.08.
Revenue totaled $6.05 billion, topping consensus estimates of $5.88 billion and marking a 0.8% increase from $6 billion in the same period last year.
Organic sales slip as volume pressures persist
Organic net sales declined 0.4% year over year during the quarter.
The decrease was mainly driven by a 1.2 percentage point decline in volume and product mix, which outweighed a 0.8 percentage point increase from pricing.
Management said weaker performance in coffee, cold cuts and operations in Indonesia weighed on volumes, although some of the impact was offset by favorable timing related to the Easter holiday.
Higher costs pressure profitability
Adjusted operating income fell 11.8% to $1.1 billion.
The decline was largely linked to increased advertising spending as well as inflationary pressures tied to manufacturing and logistics costs, which exceeded the benefits from efficiency initiatives.
Shares rose 3.6% following the earnings release.
CEO highlights improving momentum
“Our first quarter results demonstrate steady progress, and I am encouraged by the early signs of momentum we’re building,” said Steve Cahillane, CEO of Kraft Heinz.
“The investments we made in 2025 are now driving early traction, with improving market share trends, particularly within must-win parts of our portfolio like Taste Elevation.”
Company maintains full-year outlook
For fiscal 2026, Kraft Heinz reaffirmed its guidance and continues to expect adjusted earnings per share between $1.98 and $2.10.
The midpoint of $2.04 matched analyst expectations.
The company also forecast a decline in organic net sales of between 1.5% and 3.5% compared with the prior year, including an estimated 100 basis point impact from additional SNAP-related headwinds.