Caerus Investment Advisors LLC Buys Shares of 9,834 PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Caerus Investment Advisors LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm bought 9,834 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,381,000. PepsiCo accounts for 0.6% of Caerus Investment Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 23rd biggest holding.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth $27,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at about $27,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 107.1% in the second quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 234 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% during the third quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts recently issued reports on the company. Citigroup boosted their price objective on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. HSBC upped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Piper Sandler raised their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Argus raised shares of PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $169.00.

More PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Settlement with activist investor Elliott Management — PepsiCo reached a deal with Elliott (which holds a large stake) to pursue expense cuts, portfolio rationalization and potential leadership changes, a development investors often view as supportive of near‑term shareholder value and operational focus. PepsiCo Activist Deal And Good Warrior Launch Refocus Growth Priorities
• Positive Sentiment: New product expansion — PepsiCo launched the Good Warrior meat‑stick brand, entering a fast‑growing, higher‑margin protein-snack category. This expands addressable market and supports growth/innovation narrative. PepsiCo Enters Booming Meat-Stick Space With Good Warrior
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst/sector support — commentator pieces highlight PepsiCo as a reliable dividend and defensive consumer staple, which can support the stock versus cyclicals during volatile markets. These Dividend Monsters Continue to Outshine the Market: PEP, HSY
• Neutral Sentiment: Q1 results timing set — PepsiCo announced it will report first-quarter 2026 results on April 16; investors will await details on organic growth, margins and any updated guidance. PepsiCo Announces Timing and Availability of First-Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Marketing buzz — Pepsi released a special limited Pepsi flavor and other campaign activity (including new Gen Z faces in India). These create consumer engagement but have limited near‑term revenue impact. Special new Pepsi flavor is out but you can’t get it in stores
• Neutral Sentiment: Puerto Rico SNAP bill mentioned — legislation to transition Puerto Rico to SNAP could eventually raise local consumer purchasing power and beverage/snack demand, but implementation is long-timed and uncertain. New Bill: Puerto Rico Nutrition Assistance Fairness Act
• Negative Sentiment: Loss of NBA sponsorship for Starry — Coca‑Cola’s Sprite has taken back NBA sponsorship from PepsiCo’s Starry, reducing a high‑visibility marketing channel for PepsiCo’s challenger soda brand. That is a near‑term negative for brand reach and Starry momentum. Coke’s Sprite Takes Back NBA Sponsorship From PepsiCo’s Starry
• Negative Sentiment: Shareholder/ legal scrutiny — a law firm has launched an investigation into possible fiduciary breaches by PepsiCo’s board related to an antitrust suit; governance and litigation risk can pressure sentiment. SHAREHOLDER ALERT: Lowey Dannenberg Investigation
• Negative Sentiment: Short‑term price pressure reported — recent market coverage notes PEP shares pulled back amid a broader market uptick, signaling profit‑taking or headline‑driven selling despite the constructive activist agreement. PepsiCo (PEP) Stock Falls Amid Market Uptick

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.8%

NASDAQ PEP opened at $156.50 on Wednesday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a current ratio of 0.85. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $157.42 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.84. The stock has a market capitalization of $213.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.08, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.39.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The company had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.96 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.96 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.6%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 94.83%.

PepsiCo declared that its board has approved a share buyback program on Tuesday, February 3rd that allows the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are often an indication that the company’s board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

About PepsiCo

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.