PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Board Approves Stock Buyback Program

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) declared that its board has approved a share repurchase program on Tuesday, February 3rd, RTT News reports. The company plans to buyback $10.00 billion in shares. This buyback authorization allows the company to buy up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are generally a sign that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

PepsiCo Trading Up 4.9%

NASDAQ PEP traded up $7.65 on Tuesday, reaching $162.85. The company had a trading volume of 19,086,544 shares, compared to its average volume of 8,353,179. The firm has a market cap of $222.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 30.96, a P/E/G ratio of 5.10 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a current ratio of 0.91 and a quick ratio of 0.72. PepsiCo has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $163.44. The business has a 50 day moving average of $146.47 and a two-hundred day moving average of $145.81.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 3rd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.96 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.58% and a net margin of 7.82%.The business’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.96 earnings per share. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.550-8.710 EPS. Analysts forecast that PepsiCo will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed 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. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.5%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is 108.17%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on PEP shares. Barclays set a $148.00 price objective on PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, January 16th. Citigroup lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Wall Street Zen downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, December 27th. Loop Capital set a $164.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, October 23rd. Finally, Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, January 9th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, nine have assigned a Buy rating, ten have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $159.29.

More PepsiCo News

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q4 beat and solid top-line — PepsiCo reported EPS and revenue above expectations, with beverage strength internationally and resilient low‑sugar U.S. drink sales; management reiterated its FY2026 outlook. This supports the bullish view that the turnaround is gaining traction. PepsiCo tops quarterly revenue estimates
• Positive Sentiment: Shareholder returns boosted — PepsiCo raised its dividend and announced a sizable share‑buyback program (up to $10B), which is supportive for the stock’s valuation and income-oriented investors. PepsiCo reports strong Q4 revenue
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst sentiment shifting — some investors/analysts are upgrading the stock after the results and improved outlook, describing a better risk–return profile. That can lend follow‑through buying. Seeking Alpha: Why upgrading the stock
• Neutral Sentiment: Mixed headlines and commentary — opinion pieces comparing PEP to Coca‑Cola and CEO comments on demographic trends (Hispanic consumers) add context but are less likely to move the price immediately versus hard financials. Why I Choose Coca‑Cola over PepsiCo
• Negative Sentiment: Price cuts on key snacks could pressure margins — management announced U.S. suggested retail price cuts up to ~15% on marquee snack brands to address affordability ahead of Super Bowl week. While aimed at driving volumes, investors fear margin erosion and signaling of weaker underlying demand. After Years of Increases, PepsiCo Pledges to Cut Prices on Snacks
• Negative Sentiment: Longer‑term demand worries for snacks — commentary (including from market voices) highlights headwinds to Frito‑Lay volumes (GLP‑1 impacts, affordability), which could keep investors cautious even after the beat. Jim Cramer on PepsiCo’s recent rally

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.