Profund Advisors LLC Boosts Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Key Points

• Profund Advisors LLC increased its PepsiCo stake by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, buying 8,392 more shares and bringing its total holdings to 117,792 shares worth about $16.9 million.
• PepsiCo reported strong quarterly results, with earnings of $1.61 per share and revenue of $19.44 billion, both ahead of analyst estimates and up 8.5% from a year earlier.
• The company also raised its quarterly dividend to $1.48 per share, while analysts remain cautious overall with a consensus Hold rating and average price target of $170.11.

Profund Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 7.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 117,792 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 8,392 shares during the period. Profund Advisors LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $16,906,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $27,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $29,000. Imprint Wealth LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Strategic Advocates LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

Key Headlines Impacting PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Some market coverage points to PepsiCo as a possible momentum winner in consumer staples, suggesting investors are still rotating into defensive, dividend-paying names. Pepsi, Apple, and 9 More AI Momentum Trade Winners. Plus 4 Losers to Dump.
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo continues to screen as an attractive income stock, with recent dividend-focused articles reinforcing its status as a long-running dividend grower. From High-Yield to High-Growth: 3 Stocks Boosting Dividends
• Neutral Sentiment: Several recent pieces argue PepsiCo is fairly priced and not a bargain versus peers, which suggests limited near-term upside unless fundamentals improve further. PepsiCo: Fairly Priced, But Not A Deal Compared To Peers
• Negative Sentiment: Wells Fargo cut its price target on PepsiCo to $160 from $165 and kept an equal-weight rating, a sign that analysts see more limited near-term appreciation. Wells Fargo adjusts price target on PepsiCo to $160 from $165, maintains equalweight rating
• Negative Sentiment: One recent article noted PepsiCo has pulled back over the past week despite a strong first-quarter earnings report, which may be weighing on sentiment. PepsiCo's Next Big Rally Could Be Just Getting Started

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Weiss Ratings restated a "hold (c)" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Wednesday, April 8th. Barclays lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. BNP Paribas Exane lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $191.00 to $195.00 and gave the stock an "outperform" rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Finally, TD Cowen lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, February 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $170.11.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP opened at $149.06 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $203.73 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.40, a PEG ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.90 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $155.02 and a 200-day moving average price of $152.41. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.60 and a twelve month high of $171.48.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

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

PepsiCo declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock repurchase plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to reacquire up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback plans are usually an indication that the company's management believes its shares are 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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