PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares Sold by AMI Asset Management Corp

AMI Asset Management Corp lessened its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 1.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 272,555 shares of the company's stock after selling 4,869 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo accounts for 2.4% of AMI Asset Management Corp's portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest position. AMI Asset Management Corp's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $40,867,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $31,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $33,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Citigroup reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank Of Canada reissued a "sector perform" rating and set a $148.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their target price for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $159.75.

PepsiCo Trading Up 2.2%

Shares of PEP traded up $2.82 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $131.04. 26,530,795 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,977,393. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.60 and a 52-week high of $180.91. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $132.07 and a 200 day simple moving average of $143.22. The firm has a market cap of $179.67 billion, a P/E ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.83.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The company's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. On average, research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.34%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.68%.

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.