PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Up 1.8% - Time to Buy?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report)'s share price traded up 1.8% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $130.48 and last traded at $130.49. 3,155,181 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 54% from the average session volume of 6,875,741 shares. The stock had previously closed at $128.22.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several equities analysts recently weighed in on PEP shares. 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. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $148.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. UBS Group decreased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $159.75.

PepsiCo Price Performance

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 company has a market cap of $179.09 billion, a PE ratio of 19.21, a P/E/G ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $132.07 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $143.22.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The company had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Sell-side analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a $1.4225 dividend. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.36%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is presently 83.68%.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the business. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $25,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new position in PepsiCo during the 1st quarter worth $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth about $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.

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