Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. Invests $2.55 Million in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Littlejohn Financial Services Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 18,174 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $2,552,000. PepsiCo makes up approximately 1.9% of Littlejohn Financial Services Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 21st biggest holding.

Several other large investors also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Blalock Williams LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at $488,000. Impact Capital Partners LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 10.4% during the 3rd quarter. Impact Capital Partners LLC now owns 8,950 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,257,000 after acquiring an additional 845 shares during the period. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 8.4% during the 3rd quarter. Octavia Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 16,016 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,249,000 after purchasing an additional 1,238 shares during the last quarter. Well Done LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 2.8% in the third quarter. Well Done LLC now owns 4,134 shares of the company’s stock valued at $581,000 after purchasing an additional 112 shares during the period. Finally, Sharp Financial Services LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter worth about $503,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEP has been the topic of several research reports. BNP Paribas Exane cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $152.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, October 6th. Wells Fargo & Company increased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. Barclays boosted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $142.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Wednesday, December 10th. HSBC increased their price target on PepsiCo from $145.00 to $152.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, October 10th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Eight investment analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.58.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.7%

PEP opened at $145.92 on Thursday. The company has a fifty day moving average of $145.45 and a two-hundred day moving average of $144.49. The stock has a market capitalization of $199.52 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 27.74, a PEG ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.42. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $127.60 and a fifty-two week high of $160.15. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.91.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, December 5th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 108.17%.

PepsiCo Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.