J.P. Morgan Issues Update On H.J. Heinz Q3, Announces Brazilian Deal (HNZ)

J.P. Morgan issued a research report earlier this morning announcing H.J. Heinz HNZ Q3 results and 80% stak in Queros, a Brazilian food company with annual revenue of approximately $325 million. "Heinz reported 3Q11 (January) adjusted EPS this morning of $0.84, in line with its $0.84 3Q EPS preview given at CAGNY last week (February 24)," writes J.P. Morgan. "The result was two pennies ahead of the revised Bloomberg consensus. Relative to our estimate, a lower tax rate of 26% added $0.03 to the total." J.P. Morgan maintains their Overweight rating on HNZ. Shares of HNZ opened Thursday at $48.98.