PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Up 0.6% – Time to Buy?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)’s share price was up 0.6% during trading on Wednesday . The stock traded as high as $145.48 and last traded at $144.96. Approximately 1,092,136 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average daily volume of 6,743,081 shares. The stock had previously closed at $144.10.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have weighed in on PEP shares. StockNews.com cut PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They issued an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 price target on the stock. Citigroup decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.47.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.54. The stock has a fifty day moving average price of $148.75 and a 200-day moving average price of $162.39.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. The business 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% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

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

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the business. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $2,729,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $589,307,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,217,043 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,834,504,000 after acquiring an additional 3,856,193 shares during the last quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 17,113.0% during the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,220,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $547,626,000 after purchasing an additional 3,201,676 shares in the last quarter. Finally, State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 5.1% during the third 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. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

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.