PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP – Get Free Report)’s stock price rose 0.2% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $173.10 and last traded at $172.07. Approximately 1,009,068 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 83% from the average daily volume of 6,012,599 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.80.
Analysts Set New Price Targets
Several analysts have recently issued reports on PEP shares. Morgan Stanley upgraded PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday. Citigroup upgraded PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, February 9th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.77.
PepsiCo Price Performance
The company has a fifty day moving average price of $167.50 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $168.09. The firm has a market capitalization of $236.21 billion, a PE ratio of 26.16, a P/E/G ratio of 2.68 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.
PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP – Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. The business had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.40 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.03% and a net margin of 9.92%. The company’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 earnings per share. Sell-side analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.
PepsiCo Announces Dividend
The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st will be issued a $1.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.94%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 77.02%.
Institutional Trading of PepsiCo
A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. increased its position in PepsiCo by 34.0% during the 1st quarter. Mirae Asset Global Investments Co. Ltd. now owns 1,128,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $188,812,000 after purchasing an additional 286,169 shares during the period. AMI Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.7% during the first quarter. AMI Investment Management Inc. now owns 16,627 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,783,000 after acquiring an additional 113 shares during the period. Mather Group LLC. raised its position in PepsiCo by 29.3% in the first quarter. Mather Group LLC. now owns 5,562 shares of the company’s stock worth $931,000 after acquiring an additional 1,262 shares in the last quarter. Wsfs Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 117.2% during the 1st quarter. Wsfs Capital Management LLC now owns 2,995 shares of the company’s stock worth $501,000 after purchasing an additional 1,616 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Equitable Holdings Inc. grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 8.5% during the 1st quarter. Equitable Holdings Inc. now owns 26,909 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,504,000 after purchasing an additional 2,116 shares during the period. 71.40% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.
PepsiCo Company Profile
PepsiCo, Inc engages in the manufacture, marketing, distribution, and sale of various beverages and convenient foods worldwide. The company operates through seven segments: Frito-Lay North America; Quaker Foods North America; PepsiCo Beverages North America; Latin America; Europe; Africa, Middle East and South Asia; and Asia Pacific, Australia and New Zealand and China Region.