PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Trading Up 1.1% - Here's What Happened

Key Points

• S shares of PepsiCo rose 1.1% during trading, closing at $139.44, with a significant decline in volume compared to the average.
• Research analysts have raised price targets for PepsiCo, with Morgan Stanley and Citigroup boosting targets to $165.00 and $168.00 respectively, signaling a positive outlook.
• PepsiCo announced a quarterly dividend of $1.4225 per share, to be paid on September 30, reflecting a 4.1% dividend yield despite a high payout ratio of 103.64%.

Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) rose 1.1% during trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $139.81 and last traded at $139.44. Approximately 2,185,187 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 74% from the average daily volume of 8,557,722 shares. The stock had previously closed at $137.92.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research analysts recently issued reports on PEP shares. Morgan Stanley boosted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $153.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Citigroup upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a "buy" rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $148.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, June 24th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $140.00 to $154.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. Finally, Barclays raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $132.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $158.73.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The firm has a market capitalization of $190.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.81 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a 50-day moving average of $134.43 and a 200-day moving average of $140.93. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a current ratio of 0.78.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 57.81%. The company had revenue of $22.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.28 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.1%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is currently 103.64%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of large investors have recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Nova Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 1st quarter worth approximately $25,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the second quarter worth approximately $29,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $31,000. Finally, Frazier Financial Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 85.3% during the second quarter. Frazier Financial Advisors LLC now owns 265 shares of the company's stock worth $35,000 after buying an additional 122 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by 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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.