Short Interest in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Expands By 16.1%

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) was the recipient of a significant increase in short interest in the month of August. As of August 31st, there was short interest totalling 18,720,000 shares, an increase of 16.1% from the August 15th total of 16,120,000 shares. Approximately 1.4% of the shares of the stock are short sold. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 5,450,000 shares, the short-interest ratio is currently 3.4 days.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded down $0.15 during trading on Monday, reaching $177.21. 4,703,758 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,431,085. The firm has a market capitalization of $243.41 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.72, a P/E/G ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.53. PepsiCo has a 52-week low of $155.83 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.83, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87. The business’s fifty day moving average is $172.67 and its 200-day moving average is $171.57.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $22.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.59 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.37% and a net margin of 10.34%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $2.09 earnings per share. As a group, analysts forecast that PepsiCo will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Investors of record on Friday, September 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.66%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 77.5% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock worth $28,000 after purchasing an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 141.3% in the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 181 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after purchasing an additional 106 shares in the last quarter. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo in the second quarter worth $30,000. Fortis Group Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after purchasing an additional 97 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in PepsiCo in the first quarter worth $35,000. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEP has been the topic of several analyst reports. Jefferies Financial Group decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, July 9th. StockNews.com upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, August 28th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $182.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Barclays upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $179.00 to $187.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $185.53.

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.