Rep. Julie Johnson Buys PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares

Representative Julie Johnson (D-Texas) recently bought shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP). In a filing disclosed on February 12th, the Representative disclosed that they had bought between $1,001 and $15,000 in PepsiCo stock on January 15th. The trade occurred in the Representative’s “MERRILL LYNCH TAX EFFICIENT CORE” account.

Representative Julie Johnson also recently made the following trade(s):

• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Dell Technologies (NYSE:DELL) on 1/28/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) on 1/28/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Intuit (NASDAQ:INTU) on 1/28/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of ALLETE (NYSE:ALE) on 1/28/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of PPG Industries (NYSE:PPG) on 1/27/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Progressive (NYSE:PGR) on 1/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of The Goldman Sachs Group (NYSE:GS) on 1/24/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Chubb (NYSE:CB) on 1/24/2025.
• Sold $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Morgan Stanley (NYSE:MS) on 1/24/2025.
• Purchased $1,001 – $15,000 in shares of Merck & Co., Inc. (NYSE:MRK) on 1/17/2025.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded down $1.19 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $143.39. 4,999,823 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,619,325. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.80 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $163.20. The company has a market cap of $196.66 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.63, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.78 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.78%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have commented on PEP shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. TD Cowen cut their price objective on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Piper Sandler initiated coverage on PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 price objective for the company. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.47.

Institutional Investors Weigh In On PepsiCo

Hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently made changes to their positions in the business. AMF Tjanstepension AB boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 15.8% during the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 293,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,016,000 after purchasing an additional 40,031 shares during the last quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 49.7% in the third quarter. MEAG MUNICH ERGO Kapitalanlagegesellschaft mbH now owns 1,976 shares of the company’s stock valued at $336,000 after acquiring an additional 656 shares during the last quarter. ORG Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new position in PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at about $44,000. CX Institutional boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 204.1% in the third quarter. CX Institutional now owns 41,184 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,003,000 after acquiring an additional 27,643 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Wesbanco Bank Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 1.2% in the third quarter. Wesbanco Bank Inc. now owns 152,685 shares of the company’s stock valued at $25,964,000 after acquiring an additional 1,877 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

About Representative Johnson

Julie Johnson (Democratic Party) is a member of the U.S. House, representing Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She assumed office on January 3, 2025. Her current term ends on January 3, 2027.

Johnson (Democratic Party) ran for election to the U.S. House to represent Texas’ 32nd Congressional District. She won in the general election on November 5, 2024.

Julie Johnson earned a B.A. in history and government from the University of Texas at Austin in 1987 and a J.D. from the University of Houston Law Center in 1991. Johnson’s career experience includes working as an attorney.

About PepsiCo

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.