PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Shares Acquired by Capital Wealth Planning LLC

Key Points

• Capital Wealth Planning LLC increased its PepsiCo stake by 59.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 7,739 additional shares for a total of 20,703 shares valued at about $2.97 million.
• Several large institutional investors also added to or maintained major positions in PepsiCo, and the stock remains 73.07% owned by institutions and hedge funds.
• PepsiCo reported stronger-than-expected quarterly results and boosted its dividend to $1.48 per share, while analysts currently rate the stock a consensus Hold with an average price target of $169.58.

Capital Wealth Planning LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 59.7% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 20,703 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 7,739 shares during the quarter. Capital Wealth Planning LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $2,971,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the business. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 138,483,870 shares of the company's stock valued at $19,875,205,000 after buying an additional 1,612,652 shares during the period. State Street Corp lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.8% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 59,499,819 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,356,155,000 after buying an additional 1,079,970 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.1% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 33,617,937 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,814,835,000 after buying an additional 360,936 shares during the period. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $3,018,813,000. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 7.6% in the 3rd quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 13,617,747 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,912,476,000 after buying an additional 958,701 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo expanded its autonomous logistics push by deploying driverless trucks to deliver chips and drinks across Texas, Arizona, and Arkansas, signaling potential cost savings and supply-chain efficiency gains. PepsiCo and Gatik launch commercial driverless trucking deployment
• Positive Sentiment: Reports that PepsiCo’s driverless Doritos fleet is already operating at scale and outpacing Tesla’s robotaxi rollout may be viewed as a win for PepsiCo’s innovation image and operational execution. PepsiCo’s driverless Doritos fleet outpaces Tesla’s robotaxis in North Texas
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo and Gatik said they launched the largest commercial driverless trucking deployment to date, which could boost investor confidence in PepsiCo’s logistics modernization and long-term margins. PepsiCo and Gatik launch commercial driverless trucking deployment
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo launched “House of Treats,” a new experiential beverage platform aimed at premium away-from-home channels, suggesting new growth opportunities beyond core soda and snacks. PEPSI® GLOBAL LAUNCHES PEPSI 'HOUSE OF TREATS' A NEW AWAY FROM HOME EXPERIENTIAL BEVERAGE PLATFORM
• Positive Sentiment: Several research-style articles argued PepsiCo remains a strong long-term growth or rebound candidate, which can reinforce bullish sentiment around the stock. Why PepsiCo (PEP) is a Top Growth Stock for the Long-Term
• Neutral Sentiment: Analysts’ average recommendation remains “Hold,” indicating Wall Street is constructive but not aggressively bullish on the name right now. PepsiCo, Inc. NASDAQ: PEP Given Average Recommendation of "Hold" by Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo’s recent stock pullback has prompted valuation-focused commentary, suggesting some investors are weighing whether the shares have become cheaper after the decline. Is It Time To Reconsider PepsiCo (PEP) After The Recent 9% Share Price Pullback

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on the company. The Goldman Sachs Group raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, June 5th. HSBC raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Evercore raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $165.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $169.58.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ PEP opened at $144.32 on Thursday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $171.48. The company has a market capitalization of $197.25 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.66, a PEG ratio of 2.59 and a beta of 0.35. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $151.55 and a 200 day moving average price of $152.44. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.72.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $19.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $18.89 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 56.61% and a net margin of 9.15%.PepsiCo's quarterly revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. Sell-side analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.48 per share. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is currently 92.94%.

About PepsiCo

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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