PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Position Boosted by Erste Asset Management GmbH

Erste Asset Management GmbH increased its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 98.9% in the fourth quarter, HoldingsChannel.com reports. The institutional investor owned 253,561 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 126,083 shares during the quarter. Erste Asset Management GmbH’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $36,525,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. MH & Associates Securities Management Corp ADV bought a new position in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth approximately $29,000. Imprint Wealth LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo in the 3rd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Strategic Advocates LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter valued at $33,000. Mowery & Schoenfeld Wealth Management LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Finally, Evolution Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 47.8% during the 4th quarter. Evolution Wealth Management Inc. now owns 232 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after purchasing an additional 75 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the company. Wall Street Zen lowered PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Saturday, April 18th. HSBC increased their price target on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $176.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Barclays increased their price target on PepsiCo from $154.00 to $158.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, April 20th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $160.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on PepsiCo from $172.00 to $178.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 17th. Eight research analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have assigned a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $169.58.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP opened at $141.92 on Monday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.60 and a one year high of $171.48. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $152.21 and a 200-day moving average of $152.54. The company has a market capitalization of $193.97 billion, a PE ratio of 22.28, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a current ratio of 0.90.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings data on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.55 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 56.61% and a net margin of 9.15%.The company had revenue of $19.44 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $18.89 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.48 EPS. The company’s quarterly revenue was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $1.48 per share. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $5.92 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.2%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 92.94%.

PepsiCo Company 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.