PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Has Average Price Target of $145.50

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) has been given an average rating of “Hold” by the twenty-one research firms that are presently covering the firm, MarketBeat Ratings reports. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell recommendation, fourteen have given a hold recommendation, five have issued a buy recommendation and one has given a strong buy recommendation to the company. The average 12-month price objective among brokers that have covered the stock in the last year is $145.50.

Several research analysts recently weighed in on the stock. Bank of America dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $173.00 to $164.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, June 25th. Freedom Broker upgraded PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “strong-buy” rating in a research report on Saturday, October 10th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on PepsiCo from $138.00 to $137.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Weiss Ratings cut PepsiCo from a “hold (c)” rating to a “hold (c-)” rating in a research note on Thursday, September 24th. Finally, UBS Group dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $159.00 to $145.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, October 2nd.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.7%

PEP opened at $128.38 on Tuesday. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The stock has a market capitalization of $174.95 billion, a PE ratio of 15.37, a PEG ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.35. PepsiCo has a 1-year low of $123.47 and a 1-year high of $171.48. The firm has a 50-day moving average price of $134.59 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $142.33.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, October 8th. The company reported $2.34 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.05. PepsiCo had a net margin of 11.09% and a return on equity of 53.08%. The company had revenue of $25.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.95 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.29 earnings per share. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.344-8.425 EPS. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo will post 8.42 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

Insider Transactions at PepsiCo

In related news, EVP David Flavell sold 2,900 shares of PepsiCo stock in a transaction dated Monday, July 27th. The stock was sold at an average price of $139.54, for a total value of $404,666.00. Following the completion of the sale, the executive vice president directly owned 74,825 shares in the company, valued at $10,441,080.50. This trade represents a 3.73% decrease in their ownership of the stock. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.12% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of large investors have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Auto Owners Insurance Co lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 14,857.8% in the fourth quarter. Auto Owners Insurance Co now owns 49,252,907 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,068,777,000 after buying an additional 48,923,629 shares during the period. Bank of America Corp DE bought a new position in PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at approximately $2,755,509,000. Legal & General Group Plc bought a new position in PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at approximately $1,200,274,000. Corient Private Wealth LP acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth $297,116,000. Finally, Canada Pension Plan Investment Board acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth $487,558,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Trending Headlines about PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo’s latest quarterly results exceeded expectations, with EPS of $2.34 versus the $2.29 consensus and revenue of $25.27 billion versus estimates of $24.95 billion. Revenue increased 5.6% year over year, providing some fundamental support. PepsiCo’s Earnings Beat Masks a Bigger Problem With Its North American Business
• Positive Sentiment: The company is reformulating Doritos, Cheetos and Lay’s with simpler ingredients, lower sugar and new portion sizes as it responds to demand for healthier products. This could support longer-term brand relevance, although the financial payoff remains uncertain. PepsiCo Product Reformulation
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo’s dividend remains an important attraction for income-oriented investors, but commentary highlights the need to monitor earnings growth and dividend coverage rather than relying solely on the company’s long record of payout increases. PepsiCo’s Dividend Keeps Growing
• Negative Sentiment: KFC is replacing PepsiCo with Coca-Cola as its U.S. beverage supplier, with a rollout across thousands of restaurants beginning in January. Losing the long-standing account is a direct blow to PepsiCo’s U.S. beverage volume and reinforces concerns about its North American business. KFC to Sign Coca-Cola as Beverage Partner
• Negative Sentiment: An Indian court declined PepsiCo’s request to resume producing energy drinks with disputed “energy drink” labeling. The company warned that Sting and Adrenaline Rush supplies could run out nationwide within roughly two months, while competitors such as Red Bull continue selling. PepsiCo Warns India Energy Drinks Could Run Out
• Negative Sentiment: Weak North American volumes have led management to express dissatisfaction with regional performance and reduce full-year growth expectations. Analysts have also lowered price targets, adding to the negative sentiment following the earnings report.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ:PEP) is a global food and beverage company that develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad portfolio of snacks, drinks and convenient foods. Its beverage brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, 7UP in select markets, and bubly, while its food and snack brands include Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos, Tostitos, Fritos, Quaker and Ruffles.

The company’s operations include beverage production and distribution, snack foods, convenient meals and nutrition-oriented products.