Principal Financial Group Inc. Trims Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Principal Financial Group Inc. reduced its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.2% in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,774,504 shares of the company’s stock after selling 20,969 shares during the quarter. Principal Financial Group Inc. owned approximately 0.13% of PepsiCo worth $301,754,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of the stock. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 59.0% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares during the period. Highline Wealth Partners LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at about $28,000. POM Investment Strategies LLC boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 141.3% during the second quarter. POM Investment Strategies LLC now owns 181 shares of the company’s stock worth $30,000 after buying an additional 106 shares during the period. Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the second quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.4 %

PepsiCo stock opened at $164.00 on Friday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $172.50 and its two-hundred day moving average is $172.11. The stock has a market cap of $225.01 billion, a PE ratio of 24.19, a P/E/G ratio of 3.10 and a beta of 0.53. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $158.03 and a 1-year high of $183.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.89 and a quick ratio of 0.70.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, October 8th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.01. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.32% and a net margin of 10.18%. The firm had revenue of $23.32 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $23.86 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.25 earnings per share. The firm’s revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, sell-side analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently weighed in on PEP shares. Barclays dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $186.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Morgan Stanley downgraded PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and set a $185.00 price objective on the stock. in a report on Friday, September 20th. Bank of America lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Royal Bank of Canada cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $177.00 to $176.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, October 4th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lowered their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $179.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.92.

PepsiCo Company Profile

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.