PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Given Consensus Recommendation of “Hold” by Brokerages

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) has been given a consensus rating of “Hold” by the twenty brokerages that are currently covering the company, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, eleven have issued a hold recommendation and eight have given a buy recommendation to the company. The average 12 month price objective among brokerages that have issued ratings on the stock in the last year is $165.00.

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Rothschild & Co Redburn upped their price objective on PepsiCo from $130.00 to $132.00 in a research report on Monday, May 11th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $178.00 to $170.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday. HSBC upped their price target on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on PepsiCo from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 5th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reiterated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Wednesday, April 8th.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: UBS said defensive dividend names like PepsiCo could be ready for a comeback as investors look beyond the tech-led rally, which may help support demand for the stock. Article
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo continues to be viewed as a high-quality dividend stock, with recent commentary highlighting it as an attractive dividend aristocrat and a stable defensive holding. Article
• Positive Sentiment: The company also announced a management promotion in Eastern Europe, which signals continued operational execution and regional leadership continuity. Article

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP stock opened at $144.22 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $197.12 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.36. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $146.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $151.76. PepsiCo has a fifty-two week low of $132.96 and a fifty-two week high of $171.48.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.15% and a return on equity of 56.61%. The company had revenue of $19.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.48 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts predict that PepsiCo will post 8.62 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th were paid a dividend of $1.48 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 5th. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.1%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 92.94%.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PEP. Captrust Financial Advisors boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 3.6% in the third quarter. Captrust Financial Advisors now owns 554,798 shares of the company’s stock worth $77,916,000 after acquiring an additional 19,218 shares during the last quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd increased its position in PepsiCo by 11.4% during the fourth quarter. Swiss Life Asset Management Ltd now owns 415,271 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,600,000 after purchasing an additional 42,335 shares during the last quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. raised its stake in PepsiCo by 622.3% during the fourth quarter. Murphy Middleton Hinkle & Parker Inc. now owns 35,603 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,110,000 after purchasing an additional 30,674 shares during the period. Allstate Corp boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 108.1% in the 4th quarter. Allstate Corp now owns 104,723 shares of the company’s stock valued at $15,030,000 after purchasing an additional 54,405 shares during the last quarter. Finally, National Pension Service grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 2.5% during the 4th quarter. National Pension Service now owns 3,143,939 shares of the company’s stock valued at $451,218,000 after buying an additional 77,051 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.