Welch Group LLC Has $46.90 Million Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Welch Group LLC lowered its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.0% during the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 326,764 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,417 shares during the period. PepsiCo makes up 1.8% of Welch Group LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Welch Group LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $46,897,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently modified their holdings of PEP. JCIC Asset Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at $27,000. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $29,000. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at $31,000. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 667.7% during the third quarter. Halbert Hargrove Global Advisors LLC now owns 238 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PEP. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $186.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. HSBC lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $175.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 5th. Evercore lifted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $165.00 in a research note on Wednesday, February 4th. Royal Bank Of Canada lowered their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $163.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, April 9th. Finally, Wall Street Zen raised shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Saturday, March 7th. 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’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $168.16.

PepsiCo News Roundup

Here are the key news stories impacting PepsiCo this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Q1 beat on both revenue and EPS — PepsiCo reported $19.44B in revenue (up 8.5% YoY) and $1.61 non-GAAP EPS, topping Street estimates and signaling broad-based demand strength. PEP Q1 Deep Dive
• Positive Sentiment: Price cuts are working — Promotional price cuts (up to ~15% on value snack SKUs) drove the first North America food volume growth in over two years and helped win back shoppers, supporting near-term top-line momentum. Food companies are finally cutting prices
• Positive Sentiment: Brand and product initiatives gaining traction — PepsiCo highlighted innovations (Gatorade repositioning, new snack SKUs, energy/prebiotic soda strength) that management says are expanding occasions and helping sales recover. PepsiCo Q1 2026 Earnings Call Highlights
• Positive Sentiment: Analyst and press reaction is supportive — Coverage emphasizes the food-segment turnaround and productivity gains; some outlets call PepsiCo a discounted Dividend King with long-term appeal after the sell-off. 3 Magnificent Dividend Stocks the Sell-Off Has Put on Sale
• Neutral Sentiment: Sector sentiment also lifted by smaller peers — Positive earnings and outlooks from beverage peers boosted beverage-sector sentiment, indirectly supporting PEP shares. Zevia (ZVIA) Stock Trades Up
• Negative Sentiment: Guidance and margin read — PepsiCo reaffirmed FY-2026 EPS guidance but its revenue range sits modestly below some consensus estimates, and inflation/competitive dynamics could pressure margins as price restatements continue. (Company guidance and press release summarized in earnings coverage.) PepsiCo tops quarterly revenue estimates

PepsiCo Trading Up 2.3%

PEP opened at $158.38 on Friday. The company has a market cap of $216.50 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.99 and a beta of 0.40. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $160.05 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $151.46. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $171.48. 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 (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 16th. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $19.44 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.77% and a return on equity of 57.92%. The business’s revenue was up 8.5% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.48 earnings per share. PepsiCo has set its FY 2026 guidance at 8.465-8.628 EPS. Analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo declared that its board has authorized a stock repurchase 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 stock through open market purchases. Stock buyback programs are usually an indication that the company’s board believes its shares are undervalued.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 6th were issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.6%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 94.83%.

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.