Short Interest in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Expands By 25.5%

by · The Cerbat Gem

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP – Get Free Report) was the target of a significant increase in short interest in February. As of February 13th, there was short interest totaling 29,665,371 shares, an increase of 25.5% from the January 29th total of 23,630,340 shares. Currently, 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,378,549 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days. Based on an average daily trading volume, of 11,378,549 shares, the days-to-cover ratio is currently 2.6 days. Currently, 2.2% of the shares of the stock are sold short.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEP has been the subject of several research analyst reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $164.00 to $176.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Evercore raised their price target on PepsiCo from $152.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. HSBC boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Argus raised PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 17th. Finally, TD Cowen boosted their target price on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 20th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $168.50.

Check Out Our Latest Research Report on PepsiCo

PepsiCo News Summary

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP traded down $0.99 during midday trading on Wednesday, hitting $163.92. 6,852,058 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 8,795,965. The company has a market capitalization of $224.02 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.32, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.39. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $153.98 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $149.07. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.67 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06. PepsiCo has a 52-week low of $127.60 and a 52-week high of $171.48.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP – Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The business had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.96 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.96 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that PepsiCo will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo declared that its Board of Directors has approved a stock buyback plan on Tuesday, February 3rd that authorizes the company to repurchase $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This repurchase authorization authorizes the company to repurchase up to 4.7% of its stock through open market purchases. Stock repurchase plans are usually a sign that the company’s leadership believes its stock is undervalued.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.5%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 94.83%.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

Institutional investors have recently modified their holdings of the stock. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in PepsiCo by 12.4% during the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,031,000 after acquiring an additional 6,574 shares during the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 1st quarter valued at $251,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its position in PepsiCo by 138.5% during the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $862,000 after acquiring an additional 3,790 shares during the period. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. increased its position in PepsiCo by 10.1% during the 2nd quarter. Schnieders Capital Management LLC. now owns 38,164 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,039,000 after purchasing an additional 3,502 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Main Street Research LLC raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 13.1% in the 2nd quarter. Main Street Research LLC now owns 2,591 shares of the company’s stock valued at $342,000 after acquiring an additional 300 shares during the period. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

About PepsiCo

(Get Free Report)

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.

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