PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares Up 0.9% on Earnings Beat

Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shot up 0.9% on Wednesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $173.41 and last traded at $172.74. 1,831,636 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, a decline of 68% from the average session volume of 5,747,046 shares. The stock had previously closed at $171.22.

The company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 58.03%. The firm had revenue of $18.25 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.08 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the firm posted $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.265 per share. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.87%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $199.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft boosted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus lowered shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.33.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PepsiCo

Several institutional investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Ackerman Capital Advisors LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo by 8.0% during the 1st quarter. Ackerman Capital Advisors LLC now owns 2,692 shares of the company’s stock valued at $471,000 after buying an additional 200 shares during the period. Spire Wealth Management raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.1% in the 1st quarter. Spire Wealth Management now owns 55,072 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,638,000 after purchasing an additional 611 shares in the last quarter. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 43.3% in the 1st quarter. Buttonwood Financial Advisors Inc. now owns 8,210 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,437,000 after purchasing an additional 2,479 shares in the last quarter. First Pacific Financial raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 40.3% in the 1st quarter. First Pacific Financial now owns 550 shares of the company’s stock worth $96,000 after purchasing an additional 158 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Gemmer Asset Management LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 8.7% in the 1st quarter. Gemmer Asset Management LLC now owns 1,900 shares of the company’s stock worth $333,000 after purchasing an additional 152 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Up 2.9 %

The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The firm has a market capitalization of $242.15 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.77 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $168.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.63.

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.