PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Downgraded to Hold Rating by StockNews.com

StockNews.com downgraded shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) from a buy rating to a hold rating in a research report report published on Thursday morning.

Several other research firms have also issued reports on PEP. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday. They set a $172.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Barclays cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday. Hsbc Global Res upgraded shares of PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, TD Cowen reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

PepsiCo Price Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $145.35 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The firm has a market cap of $199.42 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $152.15 and its 200 day simple moving average is $164.39.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 57.32%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PepsiCo will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.73%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 79.94%.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 22.6% in the fourth quarter. Bay Colony Advisory Group Inc d b a Bay Colony Advisors now owns 8,570 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,303,000 after buying an additional 1,579 shares during the period. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.4% in the 4th quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC now owns 41,376 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,349,000 after purchasing an additional 580 shares during the period. Callan Family Office LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 111.2% during the 4th quarter. Callan Family Office LLC now owns 12,622 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,919,000 after purchasing an additional 6,645 shares in the last quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 8.7% during the fourth quarter. EagleClaw Capital Managment LLC now owns 6,740 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,025,000 after purchasing an additional 540 shares during the period. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 41.9% in the fourth quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 31,200 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,744,000 after purchasing an additional 9,217 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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.