Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP) Shares Gap Up to $32.34

Shares of Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. (NASDAQ:KDP) gapped up prior to trading on Thursday . The stock had previously closed at $32.34, but opened at $33.95. Keurig Dr Pepper shares last traded at $33.56, with a volume of 2,772,037 shares.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on KDP. Jefferies Financial Group reduced their price objective on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $35.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, March 27th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $32.00 to $36.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Wedbush dropped their target price on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $35.00 and set an “outperform” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, February 26th. Royal Bank of Canada reduced their price target on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $42.00 to $41.00 and set an “outperform” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, February 23rd. Finally, Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of Keurig Dr Pepper from $37.00 to $34.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, February 26th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, Keurig Dr Pepper currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $36.45.

Keurig Dr Pepper Stock Up 4.6 %

The stock has a market cap of $46.96 billion, a PE ratio of 21.61, a P/E/G ratio of 2.42 and a beta of 0.66. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $30.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $31.03. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 0.39, a current ratio of 0.38 and a quick ratio of 0.25.

Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, February 22nd. The company reported $0.55 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $0.54 by $0.01. The company had revenue of $3.87 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $3.92 billion. Keurig Dr Pepper had a return on equity of 9.93% and a net margin of 14.72%. The firm’s revenue was up 1.7% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company posted $0.50 EPS. On average, equities research analysts forecast that Keurig Dr Pepper Inc. will post 1.91 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Keurig Dr Pepper Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, April 12th. Investors of record on Friday, March 29th were given a dividend of $0.215 per share. The ex-dividend date was Wednesday, March 27th. This represents a $0.86 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.54%. Keurig Dr Pepper’s dividend payout ratio is presently 55.48%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other Keurig Dr Pepper news, major shareholder Holdings B.V. Jab sold 51,956,522 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.90, for a total value of $1,501,543,485.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now owns 331,487,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,579,984,617.30. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this hyperlink. In other news, Director Robert S. Singer sold 12,132 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $29.25, for a total value of $354,861.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the director now directly owns 37,643 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,101,057.75. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the SEC, which is available at this link. Also, major shareholder Holdings B.V. Jab sold 51,956,522 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Tuesday, March 5th. The stock was sold at an average price of $28.90, for a total value of $1,501,543,485.80. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider now directly owns 331,487,357 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,579,984,617.30. The disclosure for this sale can be found here. In the last 90 days, insiders sold 100,012,132 shares of company stock valued at $2,890,354,861. Insiders own 0.81% of the company’s stock.

Hedge Funds Weigh In On Keurig Dr Pepper

Hedge funds have recently modified their holdings of the stock. OFI Invest Asset Management bought a new stake in Keurig Dr Pepper during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Turtle Creek Wealth Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Keurig Dr Pepper during the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Bruce G. Allen Investments LLC bought a new stake in Keurig Dr Pepper during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Mather Group LLC. bought a new stake in Keurig Dr Pepper during the 1st quarter worth approximately $45,000. Finally, Ulland Investment Advisors LLC bought a new stake in Keurig Dr Pepper during the 4th quarter worth approximately $50,000. 85.23% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

About Keurig Dr Pepper

Keurig Dr Pepper Inc owns, manufactures, and distributors beverages and single serve brewing systems in the United States and internationally. It operates through three segments: U.S. Refreshment Beverages, U.S. Coffee, and International. The U.S. Refreshment Beverages segment manufactures and distributes branded concentrates, syrup, and finished beverages.