Chesley Taft & Associates LLC Cuts Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Chesley Taft & Associates LLC lowered its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 28.0% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 175,007 shares of the company's stock after selling 68,124 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises 1.3% of Chesley Taft & Associates LLC's holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest holding. Chesley Taft & Associates LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $26,241,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Collier Financial purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of brokerages have commented on PEP. Wall Street Zen cut PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and issued a $163.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company's stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ PEP traded down $1.08 during mid-day trading on Friday, reaching $130.03. 7,619,600 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,590,259. The company has a market capitalization of $178.28 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.71, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. The business's 50 day moving average is $136.54 and its 200-day moving average is $146.43. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.75 and a 1 year high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate 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 for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. The company's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

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

PepsiCo 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.