PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Trading 0.7% Higher – Here’s What Happened

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shares were up 0.7% during trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $155.10 and last traded at $153.07. Approximately 1,705,606 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 76% from the average daily volume of 6,970,958 shares. The stock had previously closed at $152.02.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a $172.00 target price on the stock. Barclays cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Evercore ISI dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com downgraded PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.0 %

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock’s fifty day simple moving average is $148.59 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $161.53. The company has a market capitalization of $210.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $1.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.99%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of PEP. Empowered Funds LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 9.2% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 99,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,968,000 after acquiring an additional 8,406 shares in the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. grew its position in PepsiCo by 104.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,705,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,350,000 after purchasing an additional 870,451 shares in the last quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV raised its stake in PepsiCo by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 41,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,323,000 after purchasing an additional 4,712 shares during the period. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 11.0% in the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 350,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,549,000 after purchasing an additional 34,633 shares in the last quarter. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 19.3% in the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 32,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,493,000 after buying an additional 5,220 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.