Woodline Partners LP Makes New $9.72 Million Investment in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Woodline Partners LP acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 63,897 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $9,716,000.

A number of other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.5%

PepsiCo stock traded up $0.71 during trading on Tuesday, reaching $130.05. The stock had a trading volume of 2,137,480 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,457,412. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.75 and a 52-week high of $180.91. The business has a 50 day moving average price of $139.16 and a 200 day moving average price of $147.95. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The stock has a market cap of $178.30 billion, a PE ratio of 18.68, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. The firm's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.38%. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 83.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have recently commented on PEP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Jefferies Financial Group lowered shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price objective for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Wall Street Zen lowered shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Barclays dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Royal Bank of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and issued a $163.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $160.69.

About PepsiCo

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.