PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Hits New 12-Month High – Still a Buy?

Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) hit a new 52-week high on Thursday . The stock traded as high as $170.97 and last traded at $169.2250, with a volume of 725172 shares trading hands. The stock had previously closed at $169.15.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several brokerages recently issued reports on PEP. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. TD Cowen raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $162.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Citigroup upped their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $182.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. UBS Group restated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, December 9th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.68.

PepsiCo Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. The company’s fifty day moving average is $148.78 and its 200 day moving average is $146.79. The stock has a market cap of $231.12 billion, a PE ratio of 28.19, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.18 and a beta of 0.40.

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

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 6th will be given a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.4%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 94.83%.

PepsiCo announced that its board has initiated a share repurchase 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 typically an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in PEP. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 8.3% in the 4th quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY now owns 838 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. United Bank increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 3.9% during the fourth quarter. United Bank now owns 1,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after acquiring an additional 65 shares during the last quarter. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.8% in the third quarter. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,870 shares of the company’s stock worth $544,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Koa Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Koa Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,149,000 after purchasing an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Facet Wealth Inc. grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 3.2% during the third quarter. Facet Wealth Inc. now owns 2,221 shares of the company’s stock worth $312,000 after buying an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

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.