PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Shares Sold by Flputnam Investment Management Co.

Key Points

• Flputnam Investment Management cut its PepsiCo stake by 64.1% in the fourth quarter, selling 58,234 shares and leaving it with 32,605 shares worth about $4.68 million.
• Institutional ownership remains heavy, with hedge funds and large asset managers like Vanguard, State Street, and Invesco still holding major positions; overall, institutions own 73.07% of PepsiCo shares.
• Analysts remain mixed but slightly cautious: the stock has an average Hold rating and a $170.11 target price, while PepsiCo also recently raised its quarterly dividend to $1.48 per share and reported earnings that beat expectations.

Flputnam Investment Management Co. lessened its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 64.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 32,605 shares of the company's stock after selling 58,234 shares during the period. Flputnam Investment Management Co.'s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,680,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Vanguard Group Inc. increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,612,652 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 1,079,970 shares during the last quarter. Invesco Ltd. increased its holdings in 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 purchasing an additional 958,701 shares during the last quarter. Legal & General Group Plc increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.2% in the 4th quarter. Legal & General Group Plc now owns 9,005,569 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,292,479,000 after purchasing an additional 102,905 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Amundi increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 30.0% in the 3rd quarter. Amundi now owns 8,641,588 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,207,230,000 after purchasing an additional 1,995,362 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities analysts have commented on the stock. BNP Paribas Exane raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $191.00 to $195.00 and gave the company an "outperform" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $160.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, May 18th. Wall Street Zen cut shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Saturday, April 18th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an "overweight" rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $170.11.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Piper Sandler reaffirmed a Buy rating on PepsiCo with a $181 price target, suggesting analysts still see upside despite rising inflation concerns. Piper Sandler Sticks With Buy Rating on PepsiCo (PEP) Amid Inflation Concerns
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo is highlighting its product quality and marketing with new packaging that will carry a “no artificial flavours or colours” label, which could help reinforce consumer trust and support demand for its brands. PepsiCo new packaging to carry 'no artificial flavours or colours' label
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo management said the company is emphasizing “hustle,” curiosity, and adaptability in hiring as AI reshapes talent needs. This is more of a workforce/culture update than an immediate earnings driver. As Amazon And Others Turn To AI Hiring Tools, PepsiCo Doubles Down On 'Hustle' And Curiosity
• Neutral Sentiment: Several analyst and industry pieces noted that PepsiCo’s valuation targets have been adjusted modestly and that the soft drink sector is facing tariff and cost pressures, but these updates were largely incremental rather than a major change in fundamentals. How The PepsiCo (PEP) Story Is Shifting As Analysts Rework Targets And Assumptions
• Negative Sentiment: One market report said PepsiCo stock underperformed peers on Tuesday, reflecting some relative weakness versus competitors even as broader sector themes remained mixed. PepsiCo Inc. stock underperforms Tuesday when compared to competitors

PepsiCo Price Performance

PepsiCo stock opened at $147.74 on Thursday. The stock has a market cap of $201.93 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.64 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a fifty day simple moving average of $153.52 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.63. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.48. 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 (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.06. The business 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 company's revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. Equities analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $1.48 per share. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.0%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is presently 89.32%.

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

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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