PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Position Lifted by ProShare Advisors LLC

ProShare Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 14.7% during the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The fund owned 2,545,032 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 325,877 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo accounts for 1.2% of ProShare Advisors LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest holding. ProShare Advisors LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $445,406,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 80.5% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the period. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 77.5% in the first quarter. Valued Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $28,000 after acquiring an additional 69 shares in the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 100.0% in the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the period. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Finally, Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of brokerages have issued reports on PEP. Morgan Stanley cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Friday. Barclays cut their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $179.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Argus lowered PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $170.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, July 10th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $185.27.

PepsiCo Trading Up 0.5 %

PEP stock traded up $0.90 during midday trading on Tuesday, reaching $164.76. 4,074,539 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,515,497. The firm has a market capitalization of $226.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 23.91, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.86. The business has a 50 day moving average of $170.43 and a 200-day moving average of $169.91. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $155.83 and a 52-week high of $192.38.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.86% and a net margin of 10.34%. The company had revenue of $22.50 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $22.59 billion. During the same period last year, the company earned $2.09 earnings per share. PepsiCo’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, sell-side analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.29%. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 78.66%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In related news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,360.00. Following the completion of the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,603,634. The transaction was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. 0.15% of the stock is currently owned by corporate insiders.

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.