PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Stake Raised by Allianz SE

Allianz SE boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 61.6% in the third quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 70,510 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 26,874 shares during the quarter. Allianz SE’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $9,902,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in PEP. Norges Bank purchased a new stake in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $2,330,594,000. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 14,420.2% in the second quarter. Laurel Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,890,688 shares of the company’s stock worth $513,726,000 after acquiring an additional 3,863,893 shares during the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 9.7% during the second quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 29,031,404 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,833,406,000 after acquiring an additional 2,556,163 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 19.5% during the second quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 15,577,073 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,056,797,000 after purchasing an additional 2,541,455 shares during the last quarter. Finally, First Trust Advisors LP grew its stake in PepsiCo by 112.6% in the second quarter. First Trust Advisors LP now owns 4,040,079 shares of the company’s stock valued at $533,452,000 after purchasing an additional 2,139,847 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have recently issued reports on PEP. Morgan Stanley lifted their price target on PepsiCo from $165.00 to $180.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. Argus raised shares of PepsiCo to a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, February 17th. HSBC raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group reiterated a “buy” rating and issued a $190.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Wednesday, February 4th. Eight equities research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have given a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $168.00.

Key Stories Impacting PepsiCo

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: PepsiCo is launching its Poppi soda brand in the UK — its first rollout outside the U.S. — which broadens international growth avenues for a fast‑growing beverage SKU and leverages local bottler Carlsberg Britvic for production and distribution. poppi lands in the UK
• Positive Sentiment: Dividend narrative remains supportive: coverage pieces continue to highlight PepsiCo’s long dividend track record and yield profile, attracting income‑focused investors and providing a defensive valuation underpin. Dividend King coverage
• Positive Sentiment: Management/marketing moves and digital push — PepsiCo elevated Mira Medhat to a regional beverages marketing role and is leaning into social media influencers (TikTok) to drive brand buzz, indicating active investment in demand creation for beverage SKUs. Marketing director promotion
• Neutral Sentiment: Investor attention metrics: tools and sites (Zacks/other screens) show elevated interest in PEP — higher searches can increase short‑term liquidity and volatility but are not directional on fundamentals. Zacks investor interest
• Neutral Sentiment: Nearby competitor/asset news — Celsius Holdings reported strong results after acquiring Rockstar (previously part of PepsiCo). Celsius strength is an industry datapoint but doesn’t directly change PepsiCo’s core beverage economics. Celsius earnings and Rockstar note
• Negative Sentiment: PepsiCo will close a Frito‑Lay warehouse in Rancho Cucamonga, CA, laying off ~248 workers — a cost/supply‑chain action that reduces capacity and creates short‑term disruption and local PR/ESG scrutiny. Frito‑Lay warehouse closure
• Negative Sentiment: Short interest rose sharply in February (≈25% increase month‑over‑month) — a higher short base can amplify downside risk and volatility if negative news or earnings miss occurs. (Data reported in market summaries.)
• Negative Sentiment: Proxy/ESG issue: a shareholder action over animal welfare was halted after PepsiCo relented on a demand — the resolution removes litigation uncertainty but signals concession on an ESG matter, which may concern some investors. Animal welfare proxy suit halted

PepsiCo Price Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $169.74 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.60 and a one year high of $171.48. The stock has a market cap of $231.98 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.29, a PEG ratio of 3.21 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $153.15 and a 200 day moving average price of $148.82. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.06, a current ratio of 0.85 and a quick ratio of 0.67.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Monday, February 2nd. The company reported $2.26 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.24 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $29.34 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.96 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.92% and a net margin of 8.77%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.96 EPS. Analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Shareholders 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 yield of 3.4%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 94.83%.

PepsiCo announced that its Board of Directors has authorized a stock buyback program on Tuesday, February 3rd that permits the company to buyback $10.00 billion in outstanding shares. This buyback authorization permits the company to purchase up to 4.7% of its shares through open market purchases. Shares buyback programs are usually a sign that the company’s management believes its shares are undervalued.

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.