Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. Invests $3.91 Million in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Hall Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 25,707 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $3,909,000. PepsiCo accounts for 1.8% of Hall Capital Management Co. Inc.'s portfolio, making the stock its 16th biggest position.

Several other large investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Norges Bank bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,729,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $589,307,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 18.1% during the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,217,043 shares of the company's stock valued at $3,834,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,856,193 shares in the last quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 133,371,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,280,471,000 after purchasing an additional 1,376,133 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 360.0% during the fourth quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,697,742 shares of the company's stock valued at $258,158,000 after purchasing an additional 1,328,672 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several brokerages have weighed in on PEP. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. UBS Group lowered 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price target 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 given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock presently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.5%

PEP stock traded down $0.70 during mid-day trading on Wednesday, reaching $130.67. 8,065,460 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,509,889. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.75 and a one year high of $180.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.16 billion, a PE ratio of 18.80, a PEG 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 has a 50-day moving average price of $138.84 and a two-hundred day moving average price of $147.83.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The company's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Equities research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS 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 $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.35%. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is currently 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.