PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Trading Down 1.2% - Should You Sell?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) shares dropped 1.2% on Wednesday . The stock traded as low as $129.80 and last traded at $130.23. Approximately 2,415,702 shares were traded during mid-day trading, a decline of 63% from the average daily volume of 6,608,876 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.83.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the topic of several research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price objective for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays cut their price objective on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. UBS Group cut their price objective on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $163.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.8%

The firm has a market capitalization of $181.39 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.04, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The stock has a 50 day moving average of $135.04 and a 200 day moving average of $145.63. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The firm's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. As a group, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.30%. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.68%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 3.5% in the fourth quarter. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,938 shares of the company's stock worth $295,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the period. TAGStone Capital Inc. lifted its position in PepsiCo by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. TAGStone Capital Inc. now owns 2,527 shares of the company's stock worth $388,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Lokken Investment Group LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 7,699 shares of the company's stock worth $1,171,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the period. Leavell Investment Management Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 0.3% in the fourth quarter. Leavell Investment Management Inc. now owns 27,844 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,271,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Legacy Financial Group LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 4.9% in the first quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the company's stock valued at $227,000 after buying an additional 71 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About PepsiCo

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.