PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Downgraded to “Hold” Rating by Wall Street Zen

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) was downgraded by Wall Street Zen from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report issued to clients and investors on Saturday.

Other research analysts also recently issued research reports about the stock. DZ Bank upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $167.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Tuesday, October 21st. HSBC boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Evercore ISI raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, thirteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.75.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $143.78 on Friday. PepsiCo has a 12 month low of $127.60 and a 12 month high of $160.15. The company has a market cap of $196.60 billion, a P/E ratio of 27.33, a P/E/G ratio of 4.96 and a beta of 0.42. The business’s 50 day moving average is $147.27 and its two-hundred day moving average is $143.33. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, October 8th. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.03. The business had revenue of $23.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.91 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 7.82% and a return on equity of 57.58%. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $2.31 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts expect that PepsiCo will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Triumph Capital Management acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at about $298,000. Advisors Management Group Inc. ADV acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter worth approximately $424,000. AIA Group Ltd raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 841.4% in the third quarter. AIA Group Ltd now owns 45,933 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,451,000 after acquiring an additional 41,054 shares during the last quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 0.9% in the 3rd quarter. Lindenwold Advisors INC now owns 13,115 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,842,000 after acquiring an additional 111 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Mirabella Financial Services LLP grew its position in PepsiCo by 154.6% during the 3rd quarter. Mirabella Financial Services LLP now owns 32,877 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,608,000 after acquiring an additional 19,965 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.