PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Up 0.8% – Time to Buy?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) rose 0.8% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $151.70 and last traded at $151.64. Approximately 803,020 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average daily volume of 6,447,606 shares. The stock had previously closed at $150.37.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Wells Fargo & Company lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. StockNews.com upgraded PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $172.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Wednesday. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.73.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.51 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The stock has a market capitalization of $208.41 billion, a PE ratio of 22.40, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.57%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 79.94%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 17,113.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,220,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $547,626,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201,676 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in PepsiCo by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares during the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares during the period. Swedbank AB grew its position in PepsiCo by 211.4% in the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,847,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 360.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,697,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,158,000 after buying an additional 1,328,672 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Company Profile

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.