Park Avenue Securities LLC Purchases New Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Park Avenue Securities LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 37,118 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,213,000.

Several other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in PEP. Nova Wealth Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the first quarter valued at about $25,000. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at about $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter valued at approximately $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 107.1% during the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 234 shares of the company’s stock worth $31,000 after acquiring an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% in the 3rd quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Key PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo is expanding AI use across manufacturing and supply-chain operations, deploying AI-powered digital twins to test expansion plans and optimize plants — a move that can lower costs, improve capacity planning and support margins over time. PepsiCo Deploys AI-Powered Digital Twins of Manufacturing Facilities to Test Expansion Plans
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage assessing PepsiCo’s valuation after CES 2026 highlights partnerships with Siemens and NVIDIA — investors may re-rate PEP on expected multi-year efficiency and productivity gains from AI, supporting upside to long-term margins if execution succeeds. Assessing PepsiCo (PEP) Valuation After CES 2026 AI Partnership With Siemens And NVIDIA
• Neutral Sentiment: Market commentary notes PEP “edged higher after six straight declines,” reflecting short-term technical relief but not necessarily a change in fundamentals. PepsiCo edges higher after six straight declines
• Neutral Sentiment: Unusually large options activity was reported in PEP, which can signal traded positioning or hedging and often precedes short-term volatility; it’s ambiguous for direction. PepsiCo Target of Unusually Large Options Trading (NASDAQ:PEP)
• Neutral Sentiment: Industry/peer comparisons and coverage (Coca‑Cola vs Pepsi; dividend-focused pieces) are being published — useful for relative valuation but not immediate catalysts. Coca‑Cola Vs Pepsi Stock: Which is the Better Investment for 2026?
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo was mentioned in industry event coverage (TV & Video Insider Summit), which raises visibility but is not a direct earnings driver. PepsiCo, Church’s Chicken, Electronic Arts, Kenvue, Assembly Lead Insights at our TV & Video Insider Summit
• Negative Sentiment: The FTC’s unsealing of data has triggered a surge in price‑fixing litigation naming PepsiCo and Walmart, increasing legal exposure and potential settlement costs as well as reputational risk; this is a material near‑term overhang for the stock. PepsiCo and Walmart Face Price-Fixing Litigation Surge After FTC Unseals Data
• Negative Sentiment: A separate lawsuit alleges a decade‑long price‑fixing scheme involving Walmart and PepsiCo; even if ultimately denied, litigation can mean legal fees, management distraction and potential financial settlements. Lawsuit against Walmart, PepsiCo alleges decade-long price fixing scheme
• Negative Sentiment: Political and regulatory pressure on ultraprocessed foods and sugary drinks (new dietary guidance) has weighed on large packaged‑food stocks, including PepsiCo, as policy shifts can affect marketing, product mix and sales. Kraft Heinz and Mondelez shares drop as Trump officials blast ultraprocessed foods and unveil new food pyramid

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have commented on PEP shares. BNP Paribas Exane decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $152.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, October 6th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to an “overweight” rating and boosted their price objective for the stock from $151.00 to $164.00 in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. Loop Capital set a $164.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Barclays upped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $142.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 10th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, October 14th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.68.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.7%

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $139.37 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $190.57 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.50, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.49 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.91. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.60 and a 1 year high of $160.15. The firm’s 50 day moving average price is $145.54 and its 200 day moving average price is $144.02.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, October 8th. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.26 by $0.03. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.58% and a net margin of 7.82%.The company had revenue of $23.94 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $23.91 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $2.31 EPS. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Shareholders of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.17%.

About PepsiCo

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.