Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC Increases Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 6.3% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The firm owned 79,478 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 4,709 shares during the quarter. Foster Victor Wealth Advisors LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $11,479,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $33,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 target price on PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Barclays reduced their price target on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised 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. Jefferies Financial Group lowered PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Citigroup reduced their price target on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One investment 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. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.2%

Shares of PEP stock traded up $0.20 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $131.05. The stock had a trading volume of 2,654,213 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,662,263. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.75 and a 12-month high of $180.91. The firm has a market capitalization of $179.68 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.86, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. The firm's 50-day moving average is $134.63 and its two-hundred day moving average is $144.96. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.34%. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 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.