PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Trading Down 0.4% - Should You Sell?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report)'s stock price fell 0.4% on Tuesday . The stock traded as low as $129.75 and last traded at $131.15. 2,782,474 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 63% from the average session volume of 7,571,135 shares. The stock had previously closed at $131.68.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms have issued reports on PEP. Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. CICC Research reaffirmed a "market perform" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $163.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. BNP Paribas decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

The company has a market capitalization of $179.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.81, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company's fifty day moving average is $143.28 and its 200 day moving average is $150.46.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.35%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is currently 83.68%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Several institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in PEP. Czech National Bank raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 6.3% during the 4th quarter. Czech National Bank now owns 297,475 shares of the company's stock valued at $45,234,000 after buying an additional 17,664 shares in the last quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC lifted its stake in PepsiCo by 5.9% during the fourth quarter. Aprio Wealth Management LLC now owns 4,214 shares of the company's stock worth $641,000 after purchasing an additional 233 shares during the last quarter. Matrix Trust Co boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 15.8% in the 4th quarter. Matrix Trust Co now owns 7,261 shares of the company's stock worth $1,104,000 after purchasing an additional 992 shares in the last quarter. Clark & Stuart Inc purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $4,437,000. Finally, City State Bank lifted its position in PepsiCo by 32.8% in the 4th quarter. City State Bank now owns 2,842 shares of the company's stock worth $432,000 after buying an additional 702 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

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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