PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Up 0.3% – Still a Buy?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shares were up 0.3% during mid-day trading on Friday . The company traded as high as $149.31 and last traded at $149.05. Approximately 842,524 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 87% from the average daily volume of 6,471,132 shares. The stock had previously closed at $148.62.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PEP shares. Bank of America dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, September 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday. StockNews.com upgraded PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report on Tuesday, November 5th. UBS Group dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Hsbc Global Res upgraded PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, October 10th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and nine have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $177.00.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.2 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.89, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The stock has a 50 day simple moving average of $154.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $165.40. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.26 billion, a PE ratio of 21.97, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.64%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 79.94%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. International Assets Investment Management LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 17,113.0% in the third quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,220,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $547,626,000 after purchasing an additional 3,201,676 shares during the period. State Street Corp boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 5.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,738,429,000 after acquiring an additional 2,775,679 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 21.1% in the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,293,049,000 after acquiring an additional 2,264,445 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 211.4% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,847,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592,343 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 5.6% in the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,360,850 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,632,413,000 after acquiring an additional 1,125,059 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

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.