AIA Group Ltd Grows Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

AIA Group Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 841.4% during the 3rd quarter, HoldingsChannel reports. The firm owned 45,933 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 41,054 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $6,451,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the business. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the second quarter worth about $27,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter valued at approximately $27,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC raised its stake in PepsiCo by 107.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares during the last quarter. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% in the 3rd quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities research analysts have recently commented on PEP shares. Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, January 9th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their price objective 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. TD Cowen upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Finally, Citigroup boosted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $169.00.

PepsiCo Stock Down 1.9%

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $153.54 on Thursday. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $157.75 and its two-hundred day moving average is $149.87. The company has a market capitalization of $209.84 billion, a PE ratio of 25.59, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.00 and a beta of 0.39. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

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

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 94.83%.

PepsiCo declared that its board has initiated a share buyback plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are generally an indication that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler raised its price target to $181 (from $172) and kept an Overweight rating, citing pricing power and innovation tailwinds that support medium-term earnings and dividend appeal. Piper Sandler Stays Bullish on PepsiCo (PEP)
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo India launched an EV “green corridor” to cut supply‑chain emissions and logistics cost over time — a sustainability push that can reduce fuel expense and improve ESG metrics in a high-growth emerging market. PepsiCo India expands green logistics
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo was named the official beverage partner for Venu’s Sunset Amphitheater portfolio, gaining venue distribution and brand exposure at live events — a volume/marketing channel boost for beverage sales. PepsiCo Named Official Beverage Partner of VENU
• Positive Sentiment: Varun Beverages (an India-based Pepsi bottler) is pursuing an acquisition in South Africa to diversify its portfolio into new categories — a potential long-term growth lever for PepsiCo’s bottling system. Varun Beverages lines up another acquisition in South Africa
• Positive Sentiment: Pepsi became an official beverage and entertainment partner for HBL‑PSL (cricket league), expanding regional sponsorships and stadium/consumer reach in South Asian markets. Pepsi joins HBL-PSL as official beverage and entertainment partner
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo set its Q1 2026 earnings release date for April 16 — a scheduled catalyst that could move the stock depending on top/bottom‑line results and guidance. PepsiCo Announces Timing of First-Quarter 2026 Financial Results
• Neutral Sentiment: Legislation to expand SNAP to Puerto Rico (S.3958) was introduced — a long‑run demand tail that could modestly affect beverage/snack consumption in the territory if enacted. New Bill: Puerto Rico Nutrition Assistance Fairness Act
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/market commentary comparing Coca‑Cola vs. PepsiCo highlights tradeoffs (stability vs. upside); useful for positioning but not an immediate stock mover. Coca‑Cola vs. PepsiCo: Which One Will Make You Richer?
• Negative Sentiment: Coca‑Cola’s Sprite reclaimed the NBA soft‑drink sponsorship from PepsiCo’s Starry — a loss of league-level exposure for PepsiCo’s citrus brand that could dent targeted marketing effectiveness in a high‑value channel. Coke’s Sprite Takes Back NBA Sponsorship From PepsiCo’s Starry
• Negative Sentiment: An Elliott‑led overhaul (cost cuts, portfolio pruning, leadership changes) plus a reported fiduciary/antitrust probe create short‑term execution and governance risk that investors may punish despite potential long‑term upside from efficiency gains. How Elliott-Driven Overhaul and Health Push Could Reshape PepsiCo

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.