PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Jumps 1.5% – Time to Buy?

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) shares rose 1.5% on Wednesday. The company traded as high as $129.36 and last traded at $129.27. Approximately 9,358,536 shares changed hands during mid-day trading, an increase of 15% from the average daily volume of 8,114,548 shares. The stock had previously closed at $127.30.

Trending Headlines about PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Analysts see balanced risk-reward. Bank of America maintained a Hold rating but raised its price target to $145, noting that Taco Bell strength could partly offset the loss of KFC’s fountain-beverage business. PepsiCo’s latest reported quarter also exceeded revenue and earnings expectations, offering a constructive backdrop. PepsiCo Neutral Rating as Loss of KFC Fountain Business Offsets Taco Bell Strength
• Positive Sentiment: Portfolio diversification limits the immediate impact. KFC represents only a small portion of PepsiCo’s sales, and the company continues to benefit from its broad snacks and beverages portfolio, including Lay’s, Doritos, Gatorade and Pepsi. Its long dividend-growth record may also attract income-focused investors. KFC Is Ditching Pepsi
• Neutral Sentiment: Community program adds reputational support. PepsiCo and its foundation said a school-based hunger-relief initiative has reached two million meals. The announcement is positive for corporate reputation but is unlikely to materially affect near-term earnings. PepsiCo Foundation and Feed the Children Mark 2 Million Meals
• Negative Sentiment: KFC is switching to Coca-Cola. KFC will begin replacing PepsiCo beverages at U.S. restaurants in January 2027, with nationwide availability expected by spring. The move ends a roughly 40-year relationship and reinforces concerns about PepsiCo’s competitiveness in North American food service, although the direct revenue loss is expected to be limited. KFC Switch to Coke Puts PepsiCo’s Food Service Ties in Focus
• Negative Sentiment: India’s energy-drink dispute creates supply risk. PepsiCo warned that Sting and Adrenaline Rush could run out nationwide within about two months if an Indian court’s restrictions on “energy drink” labeling remain in place. The ruling could disrupt an important growth category while competitors such as Red Bull continue selling. PepsiCo Warns India Energy Drinks Could Run Out

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft restated a “hold” rating and set a $132.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Evercore dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $135.00 in a research note on Wednesday, September 30th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $138.00 to $137.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, October 9th. Sanford C. Bernstein restated a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, October 9th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group reaffirmed a “buy” rating and issued a $165.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, October 8th. One analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, five have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $145.50.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a current ratio of 0.94. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $134.59 and its 200 day simple moving average is $142.33. The firm has a market capitalization of $178.82 billion, a P/E ratio of 16.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.35.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, October 8th. The company reported $2.34 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.29 by $0.05. The firm had revenue of $25.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.95 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 53.08% and a net margin of 11.09%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $2.29 earnings per share. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.344-8.425 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other news, EVP David Flavell sold 2,900 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.54, for a total transaction of $404,666.00. Following the sale, the executive vice president owned 74,825 shares in the company, valued at approximately $10,441,080.50. The trade was a 3.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the company. BlackRock Inc. increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 2.1% in the 2nd quarter. BlackRock Inc. now owns 118,281,854 shares of the company’s stock valued at $16,015,363,000 after purchasing an additional 2,440,377 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.7% in the second quarter. State Street Corp now owns 60,406,932 shares of the company’s stock valued at $8,179,099,000 after buying an additional 987,582 shares in the last quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co increased its stake in PepsiCo by 14,857.8% during the 4th quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 49,252,907 shares of the company’s stock worth $7,068,777,000 after buying an additional 48,923,629 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.6% during the 1st quarter. Bank of America Corp DE now owns 21,283,701 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,305,146,000 after purchasing an additional 133,325 shares during the period. Finally, Amundi increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 16.8% during the first quarter. Amundi now owns 11,444,671 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,777,243,000 after buying an additional 1,647,506 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ:PEP) is a global food and beverage company that develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad portfolio of snacks, drinks and convenient foods. Its beverage brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, 7UP in select markets, and bubly, while its food and snack brands include Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Tostitos, Fritos, Quaker and Ruffles.

The company’s operations include beverage production and distribution, snack foods, convenient meals and nutrition-oriented products.