Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Sells 19,098 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Key Points

• Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI has lowered its stake in PepsiCo by 10.3%, bringing its holdings to 166,185 shares worth approximately $24.92 million.
• PepsiCo reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings, with $2.12 EPS, surpassing analyst estimates of $2.03, and a revenue of $22.73 billion.
• The company declared a quarterly dividend of $1.4225 per share, representing an annualized yield of 4.1%, with a payout ratio of 103.64%.

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI cut its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 10.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 166,185 shares of the company's stock after selling 19,098 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $24,918,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 3.6% in the first quarter. Asset Management One Co. Ltd. now owns 630,906 shares of the company's stock valued at $94,598,000 after acquiring an additional 21,859 shares during the period. Ignite Planners LLC increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 4.2% during the 1st quarter. Ignite Planners LLC now owns 3,773 shares of the company's stock worth $566,000 after purchasing an additional 151 shares during the period. Ossiam increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 138.9% in the 4th quarter. Ossiam now owns 73,604 shares of the company's stock valued at $11,192,000 after acquiring an additional 42,793 shares during the last quarter. Graybill Wealth Management LTD. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the 1st quarter worth approximately $3,633,000. Finally, OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 12.1% in the 4th quarter. OMERS ADMINISTRATION Corp now owns 124,797 shares of the company's stock valued at $18,977,000 after purchasing an additional 13,461 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PepsiCo stock traded up $3.12 during midday trading on Thursday, reaching $143.92. The company had a trading volume of 7,669,729 shares, compared to its average volume of 9,599,806. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $135.19 and a 200 day simple moving average of $140.76. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $179.73. The company has a market capitalization of $197.04 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.21, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.75 and a beta of 0.45.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $2.03 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.28 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 57.81%. The company's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 5th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.0%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 103.64%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. UBS Group lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Dbs Bank lowered PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Wells Fargo & Company upped their target price on PepsiCo from $140.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Barclays increased their price objective on PepsiCo from $132.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an "equal weight" rating in a research report on Monday, July 21st. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $158.73.

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.