Forbes J M & Co. LLP Sells 1,731 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Forbes J M & Co. LLP reduced its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.9% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 87,977 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,731 shares during the period. PepsiCo accounts for approximately 1.7% of Forbes J M & Co. LLP’s portfolio, making the stock its 16th largest position. Forbes J M & Co. LLP’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $15,397,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,001,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,227,287,000 after purchasing an additional 578,083 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,686,139,000. California Public Employees Retirement System increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 17.9% during the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 9,664,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,641,389,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470,064 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,954,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,520,909,000 after acquiring an additional 1,345,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 15.1% during the fourth quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,421,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,430,250,000 after acquiring an additional 1,105,127 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Insider Transactions at PepsiCo

In related news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,360.00. Following the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this link. Company insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PEP has been the subject of several analyst reports. Morgan Stanley raised shares of PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price target for the company in a research report on Monday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Jefferies Financial Group lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the stock a “buy” rating in a research note on Thursday, May 16th. Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays lowered their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, June 12th. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.17.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.4 %

Shares of PEP traded up $0.60 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $167.28. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 10,899,240 shares, compared to its average volume of 4,901,276. The company’s 50-day moving average is $173.71 and its 200-day moving average is $170.34. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $155.83 and a 52-week high of $192.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $229.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.15, a PEG ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 57.37%. The firm had revenue of $18.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.08 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.24%. This is a positive change from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.50%.

PepsiCo 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.