PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Reaches New 52-Week High on Better-Than-Expected Earnings

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)’s share price hit a new 52-week high on Tuesday following a better than expected earnings announcement. The company traded as high as $163.33 and last traded at $161.0080, with a volume of 7274809 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $155.20.

The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The business had revenue of $29.34 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.96 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 7.82% and a return on equity of 57.58%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.96 EPS. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.550-8.710 EPS.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.17%.

Key Stories Impacting PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 earnings and revenue beat consensus — adjusted EPS $2.26 vs $2.24 expected and revenue $29.34B vs $28.96B estimates, driven by resilient beverage sales and productivity improvements, supporting the upside in results. PepsiCo tops quarterly revenue estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns boosted — PepsiCo raised its dividend (~4%) and backed a large share?buyback program (up to $10B), which is supportive for EPS and investor sentiment. PepsiCo Q4 Results Beat Street, Backs Outlook; Lifts Dividend, Plans $10 Bln Buyback
• Positive Sentiment: Beverage segment strength — management cited improving drink sales globally (including U.S. low?sugar offerings) that helped offset weakness in snacks, a key driver of the earnings beat. PepsiCo earnings beat as drinks sales pick up
• Neutral Sentiment: Price cuts on popular snacks announced — PepsiCo plans to lower prices on Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos and other snacks (reports cite cuts up to ~15%) to address consumer affordability; this is a strategic volume stimulus but creates uncertainty on near?term margin impact. After Years of Increases, PepsiCo Pledges to Cut Prices on Snacks
• Negative Sentiment: Softer snack demand and volume declines remain a headwind — multiple reports highlight volume weakness in Frito?Lay U.S. and broader snack categories, a structural concern investors will watch closely. PepsiCo lifts earnings despite softer demand and volume declines
• Negative Sentiment: Market reaction mixed — despite the beat and shareholder actions, some investors sold early on the price?cut news and worries about GLP?1 and secular shifts in snack consumption have been flagged by commentators, creating near?term volatility risk. Jim Cramer on PepsiCo’s Recent Rally

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PEP. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price objective on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a report on Friday, October 10th. Evercore ISI boosted their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $152.00 in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. UBS Group cut their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Finally, The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $167.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have issued a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $159.29.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.2% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 138,483,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $19,875,205,000 after purchasing an additional 1,612,652 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp lifted its position in PepsiCo by 1.8% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 59,499,819 shares of the company’s stock worth $8,356,155,000 after buying an additional 1,079,970 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 0.3% in the 2nd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 32,675,492 shares of the company’s stock worth $4,301,240,000 after buying an additional 86,695 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 9.7% in the 2nd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,031,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,833,406,000 after buying an additional 2,556,163 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter valued at about $2,330,594,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

The company has a market cap of $219.20 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.47, a P/E/G ratio of 5.05 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The stock’s 50 day moving average price is $146.13 and its 200 day moving average price is $145.67.

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.