PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares Purchased by RiverFront Investment Group LLC

RiverFront Investment Group LLC raised its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 5.1% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 4,233 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 207 shares during the period. RiverFront Investment Group LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $644,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth $2,729,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $589,307,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in PepsiCo by 18.1% in the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,217,043 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,834,504,000 after acquiring an additional 3,856,193 shares during the period. State Street Corp raised its stake in PepsiCo by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after acquiring an additional 2,775,679 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.3 %

PEP stock opened at $149.27 on Friday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company’s 50 day simple moving average is $149.25 and its 200-day simple moving average is $158.03. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $141.51 and a 12 month high of $183.41. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.72 billion, a PE ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS 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 firm had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.63%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. TD Cowen cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 8th. Citigroup lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, CICC Research reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 7th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have assigned a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $169.88.

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.