Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp Increases Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp boosted its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 14.5% in the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The fund owned 1,042,013 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 132,250 shares during the period. Mitsubishi UFJ Trust & Banking Corp’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $146,340,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at $27,000. JCIC Asset Management Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $27,000. Legend Financial Advisors Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter worth about $29,000. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 107.1% in the 2nd quarter. Vermillion & White Wealth Management Group LLC now owns 234 shares of the company’s stock valued at $31,000 after buying an additional 121 shares during the period. Finally, Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% during the 3rd 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 during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Bank of America boosted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $155.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. HSBC lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Citigroup increased their target price on PepsiCo from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 17th. Finally, Rothschild & Co Redburn boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $117.00 to $120.00 and gave the company a “sell” rating in a research report on Monday, December 15th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $159.29.

Key Headlines Impacting PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: JPMorgan upgraded PEP to Overweight after PepsiCo outlined initiatives to boost shareholder returns (capital allocation and buyback/dividend focus). That analyst backing can lift sentiment and reduce perceived execution risk. PepsiCo (PEP) Upgraded to Overweight by JPMorgan
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo is doubling down on zero?sugar products (Pepsi Zero Sugar) to win younger consumers who shun “diet” labels — a strategic repositioning that can protect soda volumes and margins over time as tastes shift. PepsiCo Bets on Zero Sugar
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo India named Savitha Balachandran (formerly of Tata Technologies) as its new CFO — strengthens regional leadership but is unlikely to move global results materially in the near term. PepsiCo India brings in Tata Tech’s Savitha Balachandran as new CFO
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst/industry pieces compare PepsiCo’s scale and diversification versus niche competitors (e.g., Vita Coco) and versus Coca?Cola; these help frame long?term positioning but don’t contain immediate catalysts. PepsiCo vs. Vita Coco: Which Beverage Stock Offers Better Growth? Coca?Cola vs. PepsiCo: What’s the Better Long?Term Play?
• Negative Sentiment: Coca?Cola reclaimed all 625 U.S. Costco food courts after Pepsi’s 12?year partnership ended — a material distribution loss in a high?volume channel that could pressure beverage volumes and incremental sales. Coke reclaims all 625 US Costco food courts
• Negative Sentiment: Headline market coverage notes PEP underperformed peers and the broader market (including pieces reporting the stock “sank” while the market gained) — short?term weakness reflecting rotation and competitive concerns. PepsiCo Inc. stock underperforms PepsiCo (PEP) Stock Sinks As Market Gains

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $144.58 on Friday. The firm’s fifty day simple moving average is $145.75 and its 200 day simple moving average is $144.97. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.60 and a twelve month high of $160.15. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.49, a PEG ratio of 4.73 and a beta of 0.42.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 108.17%.

PepsiCo 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.