PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Given Neutral Rating at Bank of America

Bank of America reaffirmed their neutral rating on shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) in a research report released on Tuesday, Marketbeat Ratings reports. The brokerage currently has a $155.00 price objective on the stock, down from their prior price objective of $185.00.

A number of other research firms also recently issued reports on PEP. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada started coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 price target for the company. BNP Paribas dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays downgraded PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, TD Cowen cut their price target on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and five have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $168.12.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $142.84 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $195.88 billion, a PE ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $148.34 and its 200-day moving average price is $155.43. PepsiCo has a twelve month low of $138.33 and a twelve month high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings data 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. The business had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The business’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.99%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 2.0% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 4,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $777,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 3rd quarter worth $996,000. Invst LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 4.6% in the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 3,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $511,000 after acquiring an additional 133 shares during the period. Virtu Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at about $1,611,000. Finally, Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.4% in the third quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 16,624 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,811,000 after purchasing an additional 550 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Company Profile

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.