Phraction Management LLC Raises Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Phraction Management LLC raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 143.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 4,400 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 2,591 shares during the period. Phraction Management LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $669,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 12.2% during the 4th quarter. Raab & Moskowitz Asset Management LLC now owns 46,693 shares of the company’s stock valued at $7,100,000 after purchasing an additional 5,078 shares during the last quarter. Fiera Capital Corp lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 4.2% in the 4th quarter. Fiera Capital Corp now owns 3,506,171 shares of the company’s stock valued at $533,148,000 after acquiring an additional 141,719 shares during the last quarter. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 10.2% in the 4th quarter. Three Bridge Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 3,490 shares of the company’s stock valued at $535,000 after acquiring an additional 324 shares during the last quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 0.4% in the 4th quarter. Naples Global Advisors LLC now owns 24,931 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,824,000 after acquiring an additional 110 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 360.0% in the 4th quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,697,742 shares of the company’s stock valued at $258,158,000 after acquiring an additional 1,328,672 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP stock opened at $143.99 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $197.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.72, a PEG ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company’s 50 day moving average is $150.73 and its 200 day moving average is $163.68.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. PepsiCo’s revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. On average, sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.34 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.76%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 77.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of brokerages recently commented on PEP. HSBC lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. CICC Research reaffirmed a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

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.