Eldred Rock Partners LLC Purchases 6,487 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Eldred Rock Partners LLC grew its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 10.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 70,949 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 6,487 shares during the period. PepsiCo accounts for approximately 3.3% of Eldred Rock Partners LLC's investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th largest holding. Eldred Rock Partners LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $10,620,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Collier Financial acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Citigroup reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price objective on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEP traded down $0.88 on Thursday, hitting $130.86. The company's stock had a trading volume of 5,084,305 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,793,783. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $136.92 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.62. The firm has a market capitalization of $179.42 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.83, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.75 and a one year high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data 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). The business had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. PepsiCo's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. Research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid 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 dividend yield of 4.35%. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.68%.

PepsiCo Company 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.