PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares Down 2.9% After Earnings Miss

PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) fell 2.9% during mid-day trading on Thursday after the company announced weaker than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as low as $137.41 and last traded at $138.17. 3,709,326 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 39% from the average session volume of 6,099,176 shares. The stock had previously closed at $142.26.

The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.52 by ($0.04). PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.95%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 77.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the company. UBS Group dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. Citigroup dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays cut PepsiCo from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Finally, HSBC dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a "hold" rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $165.50.

Institutional Trading of PepsiCo

A number of hedge funds have recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Vanguard Group Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 133,371,504 shares of the company's stock worth $20,280,471,000 after buying an additional 1,376,133 shares during the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 1.9% in the 4th quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 31,079,522 shares of the company's stock worth $4,717,069,000 after buying an additional 582,254 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,217,043 shares of the company's stock worth $3,834,504,000 after buying an additional 3,856,193 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth about $2,729,565,000. Finally, Northern Trust Corp raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 8.7% in the 4th quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,403,395 shares of the company's stock worth $2,494,300,000 after purchasing an additional 1,306,818 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Trading Down 3.6 %

The business has a fifty day moving average price of $148.07 and a 200 day moving average price of $154.40. The company has a market capitalization of $188.12 billion, a PE ratio of 19.78, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82.

PepsiCo Company Profile

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.

This instant news alert was generated by narrative science technology and financial data from MarketBeat in order to provide readers with the fastest and most accurate reporting. This story was reviewed by MarketBeat's editorial team prior to publication. Please send any questions or comments about this story to contact@marketbeat.com.