PepsiCo’s (PEP) “Outperform” Rating Reaffirmed at Wedbush

Wedbush restated their outperform rating on shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) in a research report sent to investors on Tuesday morning, Benzinga reports. The firm currently has a $195.00 target price on the stock.

Several other equities analysts have also recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com cut PepsiCo from a buy rating to a hold rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Citigroup upgraded PepsiCo from a neutral rating to a buy rating and lifted their price target for the stock from $180.00 to $195.00 in a report on Monday, February 12th. Royal Bank of Canada reiterated a sector perform rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Monday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded PepsiCo from an equal weight rating to an overweight rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on PepsiCo from $199.00 to $209.00 and gave the stock a buy rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of Moderate Buy and an average target price of $186.92.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock opened at $171.22 on Tuesday. The stock has a 50-day moving average price of $168.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.63. The stock has a market cap of $235.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 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 has a 1 year low of $155.83 and a 1 year high of $196.88.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. Equities analysts forecast that PepsiCo will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.02%.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 80.5% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the first quarter worth $35,000. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $34,000. Finally, Naples Money Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $36,000. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

About PepsiCo

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.