First Merchants Corp lowered its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 6.4% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 61,227 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,166 shares during the quarter. First Merchants Corp's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $9,180,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.
Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $31,000. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $38,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company's stock.
Wall Street Analyst Weigh In
A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Bank of America lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Dbs Bank cut PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, UBS Group decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $159.75.
View Our Latest Analysis on PEP
PepsiCo Price Performance
Shares of PEP traded up $1.00 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $132.04. 11,394,504 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,987,979. The company has a market capitalization of $181.04 billion, a PE ratio of 19.42, a PEG ratio of 3.77 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The firm has a fifty day simple moving average of $131.64 and a 200-day simple moving average of $142.63. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.60 and a one year high of $180.91.
PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). The business had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The business's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. As a group, sell-side analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.
PepsiCo Increases Dividend
The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.31%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.68%.
About PepsiCo
(
Free Report)
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.
Further Reading

Before you consider PepsiCo, you'll want to hear this.
MarketBeat keeps track of Wall Street's top-rated and best performing research analysts and the stocks they recommend to their clients on a daily basis. MarketBeat has identified the five stocks that top analysts are quietly whispering to their clients to buy now before the broader market catches on... and PepsiCo wasn't on the list.
While PepsiCo currently has a Hold rating among analysts, top-rated analysts believe these five stocks are better buys.
View The Five Stocks Here
Nuclear energy stocks are roaring. It's the hottest energy sector of the year. Cameco Corp, Paladin Energy, and BWX Technologies were all up more than 40% in 2024. The biggest market moves could still be ahead of us, and there are seven nuclear energy stocks that could rise much higher in the next several months. To unlock these tickers, enter your email address below.
Get This Free Report
Like this article? Share it with a colleague.
Link copied to clipboard.