PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Position Lifted by World Equity Group Inc.

World Equity Group Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 82.9% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 2,822 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,279 shares during the period. World Equity Group Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $429,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. AMF Tjanstepension AB grew its position in PepsiCo by 15.8% in the third quarter. AMF Tjanstepension AB now owns 293,824 shares of the company’s stock worth $50,016,000 after acquiring an additional 40,031 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB grew its position in PepsiCo by 211.4% in the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company’s stock worth $398,847,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592,343 shares in the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC grew its position in PepsiCo by 2.0% in the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 4,568 shares of the company’s stock worth $777,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Capital Group California Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the third quarter worth approximately $215,000. Finally, Arkadios Wealth Advisors grew its position in PepsiCo by 16.1% in the third quarter. Arkadios Wealth Advisors now owns 15,365 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,613,000 after acquiring an additional 2,133 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Up 3.0 %

Shares of PEP stock opened at $153.50 on Monday. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $148.66 and a 200-day moving average of $162.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The stock has a market cap of $210.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The business had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.78 EPS. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 77.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several analysts have commented on PEP shares. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a $172.00 target price for the company. TD Cowen reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $160.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, January 8th. Evercore ISI reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. Finally, StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $171.47.

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.