PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Down 1%

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) fell 1% during trading on Thursday . The stock traded as low as $174.04 and last traded at $174.09. 552,169 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 90% from the average session volume of 5,426,519 shares. The stock had previously closed at $175.78.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the topic of a number of analyst reports. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They issued a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.53.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $172.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $171.43. The stock has a market capitalization of $243.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.74, a PEG ratio of 3.03 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.64.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $22.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.59 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 57.37%. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. On average, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 78.66%.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 13.3% in the second quarter. Newbridge Financial Services Group Inc. now owns 579 shares of the company’s stock valued at $95,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Heritage Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter worth $2,095,000. Sanctuary Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth about $48,028,000. Creekside Partners bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at about $588,000. Finally, Centennial Bank AR grew its position in PepsiCo by 1.7% during the second quarter. Centennial Bank AR now owns 5,086 shares of the company’s stock worth $838,000 after buying an additional 83 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

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.