Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC Lowers Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Key Points

• Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC trimmed its PepsiCo stake by 44.4% in Q4, selling 27,755 shares and leaving 34,739 shares valued at about $5.05 million.
• PepsiCo beat quarterly EPS and revenue estimates (EPS $1.61 vs $1.55; revenue $19.44B vs $18.89B), set FY2026 EPS guidance of $8.465–8.628, and announced a $10.0 billion share buyback alongside a quarterly dividend of $1.4225 (annualized $5.69, ~3.7% yield).
• Analysts have an average rating of "Hold" with a mean price target of $170.26; the stock trades near $154 with a market cap of ~$210.6 billion and a P/E of ~24.2.

Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC trimmed its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 44.4% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 34,739 shares of the company's stock after selling 27,755 shares during the quarter. Ashton Thomas Private Wealth LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $5,054,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $544,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the period. Facet Wealth Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 3.2% during the 3rd quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. now owns 2,221 shares of the company's stock valued at $312,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares during the period. Hudock Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.0% during the 3rd quarter. Hudock Inc. now owns 7,079 shares of the company's stock valued at $994,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Delta Asset Management LLC TN boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.6% during the 3rd quarter. Delta Asset Management LLC TN now owns 11,000 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,545,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. Finally, Westside Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 2.8% during the 3rd quarter. Westside Investment Management Inc. now owns 2,602 shares of the company's stock valued at $366,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on PEP. TD Cowen raised their target price on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, February 20th. Argus raised PepsiCo to a "hold" rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a "hold (c)" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Barclays increased their price target on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company increased their price target on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $170.26.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.9%

PEP opened at $154.10 on Tuesday. The firm has a market cap of $210.62 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 24.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.40. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.48. The business's 50 day moving average is $158.37 and its two-hundred day moving average is $152.30. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 16th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.06. The company had revenue of $19.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.89 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 56.61% and a net margin of 9.15%.The firm's revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company posted $1.48 earnings per share. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.465-8.628 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 6th were given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 89.32%.

PepsiCo declared that its board has approved a stock repurchase program on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to buy up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are typically an indication that the company's leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc NASDAQ: PEP is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay's, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.

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