D.A. Davidson & CO. Acquires 98,130 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Key Points

• D.A. Davidson & CO. increased its stake in PepsiCo by 23.7%, adding 98,130 shares to hold 512,718 shares valued at $73.585 million per its latest 13F filing.
• PepsiCo beat Q1 estimates with $1.61 EPS on $19.44 billion revenue, set FY2026 EPS guidance of 8.465–8.628, pays a $1.4225 quarterly dividend (3.7% yield) and authorized a $10 billion share repurchase program.
• Institutional investors own 73.07% of the stock, while analysts show mixed sentiment with a consensus "Hold" and a $170.26 target (8 Buy, 11 Hold, 1 Sell), despite several recent price-target upgrades.

D.A. Davidson & CO. grew its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 23.7% in the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 512,718 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 98,130 shares during the quarter. D.A. Davidson & CO.'s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $73,585,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PEP. AQR Capital Management LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 120.7% in the third quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,916,417 shares of the company's stock valued at $830,902,000 after acquiring an additional 3,235,726 shares during the period. Amundi boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 30.0% in the third quarter. Amundi now owns 8,641,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,207,230,000 after acquiring an additional 1,995,362 shares during the period. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its position in PepsiCo by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 138,483,870 shares of the company's stock worth $19,875,205,000 after purchasing an additional 1,612,652 shares during the period. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec lifted its position in PepsiCo by 151.7% during the third quarter. Caisse de depot et placement du Quebec now owns 2,597,986 shares of the company's stock worth $364,861,000 after purchasing an additional 1,565,883 shares during the period. Finally, SG Americas Securities LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 406.0% during the fourth quarter. SG Americas Securities LLC now owns 1,789,959 shares of the company's stock worth $256,895,000 after purchasing an additional 1,436,216 shares during the period. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms recently weighed in on PEP. BNP Paribas Exane upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $191.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Piper Sandler upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $186.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the stock a "buy" 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 data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $170.26.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock opened at $155.44 on Monday. The stock has a market capitalization of $212.45 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.85 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.90, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $127.60 and a 12 month high of $171.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $158.61 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.23.

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

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.7%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is 89.32%.

PepsiCo declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 3rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares repurchase programs are usually a sign that the company's management believes its shares are undervalued.

Key PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo announced a partnership with Google Cloud to accelerate AI across its supply chain, which could improve forecasting, reduce costs and support margins over time. PepsiCo partners with Google Cloud to boost AI supply chain
• Positive Sentiment: Management delivered a Q1 beat and is expanding Gatorade beyond traditional sports marketing — an earnings upside plus brand extension that supports near-term revenue and longer-term growth in the sports/functional beverage category. PepsiCo expands Gatorade beyond sports as Q1 earnings beat
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo broadened its Quaker snack lineup with Protein Rice Crisps, supporting the company’s shift into higher-growth, health-forward food SKUs that can offset soda volume pressure. PepsiCo expands Quaker portfolio with Protein Rice Crisps
• Positive Sentiment: Media pieces and screeners are flagging PEP as a defensive, “safe” stock amid geopolitical uncertainty — investor sentiment that can support multiples in volatile markets as Pepsi leans into health-focused brands and innovation. PepsiCo Inc. (PEP): Fortress for Capital Preservation Amid Geopolitical Instability
• Positive Sentiment: High-visibility promotion: Gatorade launched a global football campaign (“Is It In You?”) tied to elite athletes — a marketing push that can drive awareness and seasonal volume. GATORADE ASSERTS THERE ARE NO SHORTCUTS TO GREATNESS IN NEW 'IS IT IN YOU?' GLOBAL FOOTBALL CAMPAIGN
• Positive Sentiment: Celebrity/influencer attention: Jim Cramer highlighted a potentially strong upcoming Pepsi product, which can boost retail interest and short-term sentiment. Jim Cramer Reveals Potentially Hot Upcoming Pepsi Product
• Neutral Sentiment: Coverage comparing Coca‑Cola and PepsiCo reinforces the different growth profiles (Coke’s Zero Sugar momentum vs. PepsiCo’s international/foods mix) — useful for portfolio allocation but not an immediate catalyst. Got 5,000? Coca-Cola vs. PepsiCo – One Has Quietly Outperformed for a Decade
• Neutral Sentiment: Inclusion on “bear-market” and beginner-safe stock lists highlights defensive appeal; supports demand in risk-off environments but is not a near-term earnings driver. 5 Best Bear Market Stocks to Invest In Right Now
• Negative Sentiment: Analysis suggests PepsiCo’s conservative accounting may mask softer underlying results — a potential concern for investors parsing quality of earnings and near-term profit sustainability. PepsiCo's NASDAQ: PEP Conservative Accounting Might Explain Soft Earnings

PepsiCo 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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