PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Price Up 0.8% – Should You Buy?

Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shot up 0.8% on Thursday . The company traded as high as $151.70 and last traded at $151.64. 803,020 shares were traded during trading, a decline of 88% from the average session volume of 6,447,606 shares. The stock had previously closed at $150.37.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $172.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Wednesday. TD Cowen decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 8th. UBS Group dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Hsbc Global Res raised PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company cut their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $176.73.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The firm has a market cap of $206.75 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.23, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.91 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $153.12 and its 200-day simple moving average is $164.88.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 79.94%.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of PEP. Empowered Funds LLC boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 9.2% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 99,785 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,968,000 after purchasing an additional 8,406 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 104.2% in the fourth quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,705,574 shares of the company’s stock worth $259,350,000 after buying an additional 870,451 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 11.0% during the third quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 350,225 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,549,000 after acquiring an additional 34,633 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 12.8% in the fourth quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 41,580 shares of the company’s stock valued at $6,323,000 after acquiring an additional 4,712 shares during the period. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo by 19.3% in the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 32,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,493,000 after purchasing an additional 5,220 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds 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.