Fluent Financial LLC Takes Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Fluent Financial LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 44,156 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $6,337,000. PepsiCo accounts for about 2.4% of Fluent Financial LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding.

Other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. AQR Capital Management LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 120.7% during the 3rd quarter. AQR Capital Management LLC now owns 5,916,417 shares of the company’s stock worth $830,902,000 after acquiring an additional 3,235,726 shares during the period. First Trust Advisors LP raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 112.6% during the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,040,079 shares of the company’s stock worth $533,452,000 after purchasing an additional 2,139,847 shares during the last quarter. Amundi raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 30.0% during the third quarter. Amundi now owns 8,641,588 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,207,230,000 after purchasing an additional 1,995,362 shares during the last quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 60.2% during the third quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 5,051,114 shares of the company’s stock worth $709,378,000 after purchasing an additional 1,897,865 shares during the period. Finally, Holocene Advisors LP grew its position in PepsiCo by 2,437.1% in the 2nd quarter. Holocene Advisors LP now owns 1,913,529 shares of the company’s stock valued at $252,662,000 after buying an additional 1,838,108 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities analysts have commented on PEP shares. HSBC upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 5th. Rothschild & Co Redburn increased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $120.00 to $130.00 and gave the stock a “sell” rating in a report on Tuesday, February 10th. Wells Fargo & Company raised their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $154.00 to $165.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, February 4th. Piper Sandler lifted their price objective on PepsiCo from $172.00 to $181.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a report on Thursday, March 12th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group increased their target price on PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $169.00.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.5%

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $153.04 on Friday. The stock has a market capitalization of $209.15 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.51, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.93 and a beta of 0.39. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $171.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $158.89 and a 200 day moving average price of $150.10. The company has a quick ratio of 0.67, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates 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 net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.96 earnings per share. Equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.7%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 94.83%.

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

Key Headlines Impacting PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Market note showing shares climbing on the session — reflects investor appetite today amid other supportive news. PepsiCo (PEP) Increases Despite Market Slip: Here’s What You Need to Know
• Positive Sentiment: Management highlights heavy local sourcing (~95% in APAC) plus AI and hedging to control input-cost and geopolitical risks — this should support margins and supply resilience. PepsiCo Leans on Local Sourcing and AI to Navigate Cost Pressures
• Positive Sentiment: Coverage on the same theme: local sourcing and AI-driven cost management, reinforcing the narrative that PepsiCo is proactively protecting margins. PepsiCo Leans on Local Sourcing and AI to Navigate Cost Pressures
• Positive Sentiment: Product strategy shift into meat snacks to meet demand for cleaner ingredients — diversification into premium/snacking categories can boost revenue mix and margins if execution scales. PepsiCo pivots into meat snacks, as consumers now want ‘cleaner’ ingredients
• Positive Sentiment: New global marketing platform “Pepsi Football Nation” expands brand engagement and sponsorship reach — a potential tailwind for beverage/packaged-snack demand around sports. Pepsi Football Nation: a new global platform celebrates football culture
• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo sees opportunity from China’s new Five-Year Plan — management tone suggests growth focus in a key market, which investors may view as constructive for international revenue. PepsiCo chief sees potential of China’s new Five-Year Plan
• Neutral Sentiment: Analyst consensus remains an average “Hold” — suggests no near-term re-rating from sell-side, so short-term moves may be driven more by company updates than upgrades. PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Receives Average Recommendation of “Hold” from Analysts
• Neutral Sentiment: Earnings preview ahead of results — analysts will be watching organic sales, margin trends and guidance; the preview keeps focus on upcoming catalysts rather than changing fundamentals today. PepsiCo Earnings Preview: What to Expect
• Negative Sentiment: Article flags PepsiCo among profitable companies with “questionable fundamentals” — a reminder some investors see valuation or structural concerns despite profitability; could pressure sentiment if echoed by analysts. 3 Profitable Stocks with Questionable Fundamentals

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.