PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Coverage Initiated by Analysts at Royal Bank of Canada

Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) in a research report report published on Tuesday morning. The brokerage issued a $172.00 price objective on the stock.

Several other equities analysts also recently issued reports on the company. Barclays cut their target price on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 17th. TD Cowen reduced their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Piper Sandler started coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 target price for the company. Finally, Redburn Atlantic upgraded PepsiCo to a “strong sell” rating in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, eleven have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.2 %

NASDAQ PEP opened at $145.35 on Tuesday. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $152.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $164.39. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. PepsiCo has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The firm has a market cap of $199.42 billion, a PE ratio of 21.44, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.92 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.32% and a net margin of 10.18%. The firm had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts forecast that PepsiCo will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.73%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 79.94%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. Cross Staff Investments Inc boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 0.9% during the 3rd quarter. Cross Staff Investments Inc now owns 7,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 2.1% in the third quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after buying an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. LCM Capital Management Inc grew its stake in PepsiCo by 0.8% during the 3rd quarter. LCM Capital Management Inc now owns 7,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after acquiring an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its stake in PepsiCo by 1.1% in the 3rd quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 5,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $973,000 after purchasing an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.6% during the 3rd quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,310 shares of the company’s stock worth $733,000 after purchasing an additional 66 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other 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.