Sen. Sheldon Whitehouse Sells PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock

Key Points

• Senator Sheldon Whitehouse disclosed he sold between $1,001 and $15,000 of PepsiCo (PEP) stock on Feb. 23 (filing disclosed Mar. 6), and made several other small sales of major holdings including Verizon, Home Depot, Mastercard and NVIDIA.
• PepsiCo posted a slight Q4 earnings beat (EPS $2.26 vs. $2.24) with $29.34 billion in revenue, announced a quarterly dividend of $1.4225 per share (3.6% yield) and a $10.0 billion share buyback program, while analysts’ consensus remains a "Hold" with an average target of $168.50.

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse (Democratic-Rhode Island) recently sold shares of PepsiCo, Inc. NASDAQ: PEP. In a filing disclosed on March 06th, the Senator disclosed that they had sold between $1,001 and $15,000 in PepsiCo stock on February 23rd.

Senator Sheldon Whitehouse also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Verizon Communications NYSE: VZ on 2/23/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Home Depot NYSE: HD on 2/23/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Mastercard NYSE: MA on 2/23/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Home Depot NYSE: HD on 1/9/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of NVIDIA NASDAQ: NVDA on 1/9/2026.
• Sold $15,001 - $50,000 in shares of McDonald's NYSE: MCD on 1/9/2026.
• Sold $1,001 - $15,000 in shares of Starbucks NASDAQ: SBUX on 1/9/2026.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.8%

PEP stock opened at $159.43 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $171.48. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.67. The stock has a market capitalization of $217.89 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.57, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.39. The business's fifty day moving average price is $155.04 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $149.32.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts' consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $28.96 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. PepsiCo's quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business posted $1.96 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 94.83%.

PepsiCo announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company's board of directors believes its stock is undervalued.

More PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Product innovation and brand initiatives support long‑term growth — PepsiCo is rolling out Gatorade Lower Sugar nationwide, expanding poppi into the U.K., and using pop‑culture tie‑ins for bubly, signalling renewed focus on higher‑growth, “better‑for‑you” beverage categories that can help revenue/margin mix over time. PepsiCo Leans On Health Drinks And Pop Culture As Shares Lag Targets
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results and underlying sales growth remain supportive — post‑Q4 coverage discusses the modest EPS beat and revenue growth, reinforcing the company’s steady cash generation and dividend/ buyback capacity. This underpins investor confidence in the defensive consumer staple story. PepsiCo (PEP): Buy, sell, or hold post Q4 earnings?
• Positive Sentiment: Large bullish options activity suggests some traders expect a rally — unusually high call buying (vastly above average daily volume) can indicate speculative or hedged bullish interest that may fuel upward momentum if fundamentals or sentiment improve. (Note: internal market data)
• Neutral Sentiment: Income appeal remains a structural tailwind — dividend‑focused publications continue to highlight PepsiCo as a holding for yield/defensive exposure amid macro uncertainty, which can support the share price over time even if near‑term volatility occurs. The NASDAQ Dividend Stocks Retirees Are Loading Up On Before The Next Rate Cut
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector re‑rating conversations persist — consumer‑staples roundups list PepsiCo among stable dividend names; useful for longer‑term allocation but unlikely to trigger sharp immediate moves absent new data. 5 Consumer-Staples Stocks to Buy as the Market Gets Shakier
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest update — recent reporting on short interest provides data investors watch for squeeze/pressure dynamics but by itself doesn’t change fundamentals. PepsiCo, Inc. NASDAQ: PEP Short Interest Update
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/investor‑litigation headline increases risk premium — a new investor alert around possible breaches of fiduciary duty draws attention to governance/legal risk that can pressure sentiment and valuation. PEPSICO, INC. INVESTOR ALERT: Scott+Scott ... Investigates PepsiCo, Inc.'s Directors and Officers
• Negative Sentiment: Near‑term analyst/market skepticism — coverage noting that shares are “lagging targets” and articles flagging the stock among “unpopular” names highlight downward analyst pressure and sentiment risk, which can drive short‑term selling. 3 Unpopular Stocks with Open Questions
• Negative Sentiment: Price underperformance versus the market — headlines documenting a recent intraday dip show immediate selling pressure; combined with low average volume today, this can amplify moves on negative news. PepsiCo (PEP) Dips More Than Broader Market: What You Should Know

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently modified their holdings of the company. Norges Bank bought a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $3,018,813,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 14,420.2% in the 2nd quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,890,688 shares of the company's stock valued at $513,726,000 after buying an additional 3,863,893 shares during the last quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 120.7% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,916,417 shares of the company's stock worth $830,902,000 after acquiring an additional 3,235,726 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in PepsiCo by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,031,404 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,833,406,000 after acquiring an additional 2,556,163 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 19.5% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,577,073 shares of the company's stock worth $2,056,797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,541,455 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Morgan Stanley upped their target price on PepsiCo from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Wall Street Zen upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a "hold" rating to a "buy" rating in a research report on Saturday. Argus raised PepsiCo to a "hold" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a "sell" rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $168.50.

About Senator Whitehouse

Sheldon Whitehouse (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. Senate from Rhode Island. He assumed office on January 3, 2007. His current term ends on January 3, 2031. Whitehouse (Democratic Party) ran for re-election to the U.S. Senate to represent Rhode Island. He won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

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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