Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. Stock Upgraded (DPS)

NEW YORK (TheStreet) -- Dr Pepper Snapple Group (NYSE:DPS) has been upgraded by TheStreet Ratings from hold to buy. The company's strengths can be seen in multiple areas, such as its growth in earnings per share, revenue growth, good cash flow from operations, notable return on equity and expanding profit margins. We feel these strengths outweigh the fact that the company has had sub par growth in net income.

Highlights from the ratings report include:

• The gross profit margin for DR PEPPER SNAPPLE GROUP INC is rather high; currently it is at 62.20%. Regardless of DPS's high profit margin, it has managed to decrease from the same period last year. Despite the mixed results of the gross profit margin, DPS's net profit margin of 7.90% is significantly lower than the same period one year prior.
• The return on equity has improved slightly when compared to the same quarter one year prior. This can be construed as a modest strength in the organization. Compared to other companies in the Beverages industry and the overall market on the basis of return on equity, DR PEPPER SNAPPLE GROUP INC has underperformed in comparison with the industry average, but has exceeded that of the S&P 500.
• Net operating cash flow has significantly increased by 507.31% to $996.00 million when compared to the same quarter last year. In addition, DR PEPPER SNAPPLE GROUP INC has also vastly surpassed the industry average cash flow growth rate of 17.79%.
• DPS's revenue growth trails the industry average of 20.3%. Since the same quarter one year prior, revenues slightly increased by 4.1%. This growth in revenue appears to have trickled down to the company's bottom line, improving the earnings per share.
• DR PEPPER SNAPPLE GROUP INC has improved earnings per share by 11.4% in the most recent quarter compared to the same quarter a year ago. Stable earnings per share over the past year indicate the company has sound management over its earnings and share float. We anticipate these figures will begin to experience more growth in the coming year. During the past fiscal year, DR PEPPER SNAPPLE GROUP INC increased its bottom line by earning $2.18 versus $2.17 in the prior year. This year, the market expects an improvement in earnings ($2.75 versus $2.18).

Dr Pepper Snapple Group, Inc. operates as a brand owner, manufacturer, and distributor of non-alcoholic beverages in the United States, Canada, Mexico, and the Caribbean. The company has a P/E ratio of 17.5, equal to the average food & beverage industry P/E ratio and above the S&P 500 P/E ratio of 16.2. Dr Pepper Snapple Group has a market cap of $8.5 billion and is part of the consumer goods sector and food & beverage industry. Shares are up 6.1% year to date as of the close of trading on Monday.

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• Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. Growth Rates

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• Dr Pepper Snapple Group Inc. Income Statement