Cutler Investment Counsel LLC Has $11.70 Million Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Cutler Investment Counsel LLC cut its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 68,370 shares of the company’s stock after selling 828 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo makes up about 1.7% of Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st largest position. Cutler Investment Counsel LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $11,698,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA lifted its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Avion Wealth lifted its position in PepsiCo by 61.7% in the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Pacific Center for Financial Services bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the 1st quarter worth approximately $47,000. Finally, Financial Connections Group Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $44,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have issued reports on PEP. Argus downgraded PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Citigroup upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and increased their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Jefferies Financial Group raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $199.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, April 5th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised shares of PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $186.92.

PepsiCo Trading Up 0.5 %

Shares of NASDAQ PEP traded up $0.81 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $173.08. The stock had a trading volume of 2,935,555 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,686,042. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.85. The firm has a market cap of $237.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.24, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.53. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $155.83 and a 1 year high of $196.88. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $168.55 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.42.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 58.03%. The business had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a $1.265 dividend. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 77.02%.

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.