Aspen Investment Management Inc Sells 687 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Aspen Investment Management Inc lowered its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 4.9% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 13,369 shares of the company’s stock after selling 687 shares during the period. PepsiCo accounts for 0.9% of Aspen Investment Management Inc’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th largest holding. Aspen Investment Management Inc’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $2,033,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PEP. International Assets Investment Management LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 17,113.0% in the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,220,385 shares of the company’s stock valued at $547,626,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201,676 shares in the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 5.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its position in PepsiCo by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares during the last quarter. Swedbank AB lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 211.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,847,000 after buying an additional 1,592,343 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp boosted its position in 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 buying an additional 1,328,672 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Price Performance

NASDAQ PEP opened at $149.10 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $141.51 and a 12-month high of $183.41. The firm’s 50 day moving average is $148.94 and its 200-day moving average is $162.49. The company has a market capitalization of $204.49 billion, a PE ratio of 21.45, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.54. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The business had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 earnings per share. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.31 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company 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 of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.64%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several brokerages have recently commented on PEP. CICC Research reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup lowered their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Piper Sandler began coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 price objective for the company. Finally, StockNews.com cut PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus 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.