Sonora Investment Management Group LLC Increases Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Sonora Investment Management Group LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 0.3% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 101,777 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 272 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises approximately 1.2% of Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Sonora Investment Management Group LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $15,260,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collier Financial bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and reduced their price objective for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $163.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. Bank of America cut their price target on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.1%

Shares of PEP opened at $129.96 on Tuesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $178.19 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.70, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.75 and a 1 year high of $180.91. The business’s 50 day simple moving average is $135.76 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.84. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The firm’s revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.38%. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 83.68%.

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.