Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management Has $3.59 Million Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 8.8% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 23,611 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,900 shares during the quarter. Empirical Financial Services LLC d.b.a. Empirical Wealth Management’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $3,590,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 9.2% during the 3rd quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 99,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,968,000 after buying an additional 8,406 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 104.2% during the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,705,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,350,000 after acquiring an additional 870,451 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 11.0% in the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 350,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,549,000 after purchasing an additional 34,633 shares during the period. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 41,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,323,000 after purchasing an additional 4,712 shares during the period. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 19.3% in the third quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 32,267 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,493,000 after purchasing an additional 5,220 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities analysts have recently issued reports on the company. Barclays decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $158.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, January 17th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $155.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, January 7th. Piper Sandler started coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 price objective on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price objective on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have assigned a hold rating and nine have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $177.00.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

PEP opened at $154.61 on Tuesday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $153.88 and its 200 day simple moving average is $165.35. The firm has a market capitalization of $212.12 billion, a PE ratio of 22.80, a PEG ratio of 2.86 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th were paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 6th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.51%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.94%.

About PepsiCo

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.