PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Shares Bought by Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.

Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 14.9% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 127,341 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 16,541 shares during the period. PepsiCo makes up approximately 0.9% of Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 19th biggest holding. Meiji Yasuda Asset Management Co Ltd.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $18,276,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth about $29,000. Imprint Wealth LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $33,000. Strategic Advocates LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, Highline Wealth Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC now owns 250 shares of the company’s stock worth $36,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PepsiCo stock opened at $148.85 on Friday. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $154.36 and its 200 day moving average price is $152.47. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $171.48. The stock has a market capitalization of $203.44 billion, a P/E ratio of 23.37, a P/E/G ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.90.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.15% and a return on equity of 56.61%. The firm had revenue of $19.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo announced that its board has initiated a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization permits the company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase programs are often an indication that the company’s management believes its stock is undervalued.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 5th will be issued a $1.48 dividend. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This is a positive change from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 89.32%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on PEP shares. Wall Street Zen cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. Barclays raised their target price on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Monday, April 20th. Morgan Stanley raised their target price on PepsiCo from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their target price on PepsiCo from $169.00 to $173.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 17th. Finally, Weiss Ratings restated a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $170.11.

Key PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo and Varun Beverages extended their exclusive bottling agreement in India through 2049, giving PepsiCo greater distribution stability and more flexibility to grow in a key international market.
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo announced new growth initiatives in Asia-Pacific and a regenerated agriculture partnership with LDC, both of which support the company’s sustainability efforts and supply-chain resilience.
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo continues to push product innovation, including a new functional ready-to-drink tea, which may help offset slowing demand in some core snack categories.
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo India plans to invest about Rs 5,700 crore by 2030 to expand capacity, a sign of confidence in demand but also a longer-term capital commitment.
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst commentary and recent features suggest PepsiCo still has a credible growth story thanks to pricing power, distribution scale, and expansion into better-for-you products, but these articles do not point to a near-term earnings surprise.
• Negative Sentiment: Reports that PepsiCo is raising prices on smaller chip bags highlight rising costs in the business and could increase consumer pushback, potentially pressuring volume growth.
• Negative Sentiment: Cost inflation remains a concern, and the need for selective price increases suggests PepsiCo is still facing margin pressure in its U.S. snack business.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.