Westchester Capital Management Inc. Decreases Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Westchester Capital Management Inc. trimmed its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.5% in the 2nd quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 11,452 shares of the company’s stock after selling 170 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo accounts for approximately 0.4% of Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 29th largest position. Westchester Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,512,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of PEP. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.4% during the first quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 135,174,252 shares of the company’s stock valued at $20,268,027,000 after purchasing an additional 1,802,748 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 5.0% during the first quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 26,475,241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,969,698,000 after acquiring an additional 1,258,198 shares in the last quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp grew its stake in PepsiCo by 0.4% in the first quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,062,857 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,108,585,000 after purchasing an additional 49,699 shares in the last quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC raised its position in PepsiCo by 1.8% during the 1st quarter. UBS AM A Distinct Business Unit of UBS Asset Management Americas LLC now owns 11,525,812 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,728,180,000 after purchasing an additional 208,292 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Invesco Ltd. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 4.5% in the 1st quarter. Invesco Ltd. now owns 11,328,158 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,698,544,000 after buying an additional 491,894 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PEP stock opened at $150.08 on Monday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $177.50. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $205.47 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 28.53, a PEG ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.46. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $144.53 and its 200-day simple moving average is $139.19.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, October 9th. The company reported $2.29 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.26 by $0.03. The company had revenue of $23.94 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.91 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 7.82% and a return on equity of 57.58%. PepsiCo’s revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $2.31 EPS. PepsiCo has set its FY 2025 guidance at 8.120-8.120 EPS. As a group, equities analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th were paid a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.8%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, September 5th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.17%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of research firms recently weighed in on PEP. Citigroup lowered their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $168.00 to $165.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, September 25th. Cowen reissued a “hold” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on PepsiCo from $153.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Friday, July 18th. Evercore ISI upped their price objective on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $152.00 in a research note on Friday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group lifted their target price on PepsiCo from $161.00 to $163.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and fourteen have given a Hold rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $157.75.

About PepsiCo

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.