PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Trading Down 0.4% on Analyst Downgrade

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shares dropped 0.4% during mid-day trading on Friday after Royal Bank of Canada lowered their price target on the stock from $177.00 to $176.00. Royal Bank of Canada currently has a sector perform rating on the stock. PepsiCo traded as low as $166.82 and last traded at $167.83. Approximately 1,032,030 shares traded hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 81% from the average daily volume of 5,475,297 shares. The stock had previously closed at $168.53.

A number of other analysts also recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley cut shares of PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock. in a research note on Friday, September 20th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $182.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Tuesday, October 1st. DZ Bank cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $183.00 price objective for the company. in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, July 3rd. Nine equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $185.29.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 59.0% in the third quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 77.5% during the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 141.3% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 181 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Fortis Group Advisors LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $173.80 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $172.10. The company has a market cap of $230.92 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.38, a P/E/G ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.53.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.37% and a net margin of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $22.50 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.14 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 6th were issued a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 6th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.23%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 78.66%.

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.