AIA Group Ltd Sells 6,245 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

AIA Group Ltd reduced its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 68.3% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 2,902 shares of the company’s stock after selling 6,245 shares during the period. AIA Group Ltd’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $493,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its position in PepsiCo by 80.5% during the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $34,000. Avion Wealth grew its position in PepsiCo by 61.7% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after buying an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Financial Connections Group Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $44,000. Finally, Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new stake in PepsiCo during the first quarter worth about $47,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PEP shares. Citigroup raised PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Finally, Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $186.92.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP opened at $174.13 on Friday. The company has a fifty day moving average price of $168.68 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $167.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.85. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.83 and a 52 week high of $196.88. The firm has a market capitalization of $239.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.50, a P/E/G ratio of 2.70 and a beta of 0.53.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.92% and a return on equity of 58.03%. The firm had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.40 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.67 EPS. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st were issued a dividend of $1.265 per share. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.91%. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.02%.

PepsiCo Company 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.