HUB Investment Partners LLC Boosts Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

HUB Investment Partners LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 59.6% during the third quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 32,758 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 12,236 shares during the quarter. HUB Investment Partners LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,601,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth about $27,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 3rd quarter worth about $27,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC increased its stake in 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 buying an additional 121 shares in the last quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% in the third quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Manning & Napier Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter worth approximately $37,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PepsiCo stock opened at $159.43 on Friday. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $155.04 and a 200 day moving average price of $149.32. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $171.48. The stock has a market cap of $217.89 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.57, a PEG ratio of 3.08 and a beta of 0.39.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.96 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo announced that its board has authorized a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to buy up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are often a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.6%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 94.83%.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Product innovation and brand initiatives support long?term growth — PepsiCo is rolling out Gatorade Lower Sugar nationwide, expanding poppi into the U.K., and using pop?culture tie?ins for bubly, signalling renewed focus on higher?growth, “better?for?you” beverage categories that can help revenue/margin mix over time. PepsiCo Leans On Health Drinks And Pop Culture As Shares Lag Targets
• Positive Sentiment: Quarterly results and underlying sales growth remain supportive — post?Q4 coverage discusses the modest EPS beat and revenue growth, reinforcing the company’s steady cash generation and dividend/ buyback capacity. This underpins investor confidence in the defensive consumer staple story. PepsiCo (PEP): Buy, sell, or hold post Q4 earnings?
• Positive Sentiment: Large bullish options activity suggests some traders expect a rally — unusually high call buying (vastly above average daily volume) can indicate speculative or hedged bullish interest that may fuel upward momentum if fundamentals or sentiment improve. (Note: internal market data)
• Neutral Sentiment: Income appeal remains a structural tailwind — dividend?focused publications continue to highlight PepsiCo as a holding for yield/defensive exposure amid macro uncertainty, which can support the share price over time even if near?term volatility occurs. The NASDAQ Dividend Stocks Retirees Are Loading Up On Before The Next Rate Cut
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector re?rating conversations persist — consumer?staples roundups list PepsiCo among stable dividend names; useful for longer?term allocation but unlikely to trigger sharp immediate moves absent new data. 5 Consumer-Staples Stocks to Buy as the Market Gets Shakier
• Neutral Sentiment: Short interest update — recent reporting on short interest provides data investors watch for squeeze/pressure dynamics but by itself doesn’t change fundamentals. PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Short Interest Update
• Negative Sentiment: Legal/investor?litigation headline increases risk premium — a new investor alert around possible breaches of fiduciary duty draws attention to governance/legal risk that can pressure sentiment and valuation. PEPSICO, INC. INVESTOR ALERT: Scott+Scott … Investigates PepsiCo, Inc.’s Directors and Officers
• Negative Sentiment: Near?term analyst/market skepticism — coverage noting that shares are “lagging targets” and articles flagging the stock among “unpopular” names highlight downward analyst pressure and sentiment risk, which can drive short?term selling. 3 Unpopular Stocks with Open Questions
• Negative Sentiment: Price underperformance versus the market — headlines documenting a recent intraday dip show immediate selling pressure; combined with low average volume today, this can amplify moves on negative news. PepsiCo (PEP) Dips More Than Broader Market: What You Should Know

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several brokerages recently commented on PEP. HSBC boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Piper Sandler raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $161.00 to $172.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Morgan Stanley upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Wells Fargo & Company boosted their target price on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $168.50.

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.