PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Given Average Recommendation of “Hold” by Analysts

Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) have earned an average recommendation of “Hold” from the eighteen ratings firms that are currently covering the stock, MarketBeat reports. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. The average twelve-month price objective among analysts that have issued a report on the stock in the last year is $176.73.

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. StockNews.com upgraded PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. Redburn Atlantic upgraded shares of PepsiCo to a “strong sell” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock opened at $151.90 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $208.41 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.40, a P/E/G ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.54. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $153.51 and its 200 day moving average is $165.07. PepsiCo has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.57%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 79.94%.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of PEP. Opes Wealth Management LLC grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.5% in the 4th quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,825 shares of the company’s stock worth $430,000 after buying an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Stanich Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $379,000. MOKAN Wealth Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $1,676,000. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 17.1% in the 4th quarter. Blue Zone Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 5,309 shares of the company’s stock worth $807,000 after purchasing an additional 774 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Palouse Capital Management Inc. purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $61,000. 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.