PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Rating Increased to Buy at StockNews.com

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) was upgraded by research analysts at StockNews.com from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research report issued on Wednesday.

PEP has been the topic of a number of other research reports. DZ Bank cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $183.00 target price on the stock. in a research note on Friday, July 19th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price objective for the company. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, July 10th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a report on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, July 8th. Seven investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.53.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP opened at $172.09 on Wednesday. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $169.70 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $170.77. PepsiCo has a 52-week low of $155.83 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a quick ratio of 0.64 and a current ratio of 0.83. The stock has a market capitalization of $236.59 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.98, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.52.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.34% and a return on equity of 57.37%. The firm had revenue of $22.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $22.59 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $2.09 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts predict that PepsiCo will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On PepsiCo

Institutional investors and hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 1,129.9% in the fourth quarter. GUNN & Co INVESTMENT MANAGEMENT INC. now owns 233,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $39,585,000 after buying an additional 214,122 shares during the last quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated boosted its position in PepsiCo by 4.8% in the fourth quarter. Silver Oak Securities Incorporated now owns 2,707 shares of the company’s stock valued at $460,000 after buying an additional 124 shares during the last quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 23.4% in the fourth quarter. Gilbert & Cook Inc. now owns 5,971 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,014,000 after buying an additional 1,133 shares during the last quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Duff & Phelps Investment Management Co. now owns 15,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,607,000 after acquiring an additional 140 shares during the period. Finally, Certuity LLC lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 34.5% in the fourth quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 4,561 shares of the company’s stock valued at $775,000 after acquiring an additional 1,170 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc engages in the manufacture, marketing, distribution, and sale of various beverages and convenient foods worldwide. The company operates through seven segments: Frito-Lay North America; Quaker Foods North America; PepsiCo Beverages North America; Latin America; Europe; Africa, Middle East and South Asia; and Asia Pacific, Australia and New Zealand and China Region.