Brendel Financial Advisors LLC Makes New $458,000 Investment in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Brendel Financial Advisors LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund bought 2,694 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $458,000.

A number of other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 80.5% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock traded up $1.86 during trading on Friday, hitting $174.13. The company had a trading volume of 6,636,697 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,502,704. The firm has a market capitalization of $239.34 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.53. The business has a 50 day moving average of $168.68 and a 200 day moving average of $167.45. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $155.83 and a fifty-two week high of $196.88. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 58.03%. The company had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $28.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.67 EPS. PepsiCo’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a $1.265 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.02%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have commented on PEP. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Wedbush restated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group boosted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $199.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Six investment analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.92.

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.