Jefferies Financial Group Inc. Purchases 7,017 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Jefferies Financial Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 13.1% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 60,710 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 7,017 shares during the quarter. Jefferies Financial Group Inc.'s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $9,232,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PEP. Bernard Wealth Management Corp. bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth approximately $133,000. Capital A Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $145,000. LM Advisors LLC boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 240.5% in the fourth quarter. LM Advisors LLC now owns 6,957 shares of the company's stock worth $1,067,000 after acquiring an additional 4,914 shares in the last quarter. Heck Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $1,222,000. Finally, Brick & Kyle Associates increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 7.3% during the fourth quarter. Brick & Kyle Associates now owns 31,566 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,800,000 after acquiring an additional 2,138 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Up 1.6%

Shares of NASDAQ PEP traded up $2.03 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $131.37. 13,960,301 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,503,657. The company's 50 day moving average price is $139.16 and its 200 day moving average price is $147.95. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $127.75 and a 12 month high of $180.91. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.12 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.90, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

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). The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The company's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.33%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 83.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of analysts have commented on PEP shares. UBS Group reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wall Street Zen cut PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Dbs Bank downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Barclays reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Monday, April 28th. One research 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. Based on data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.69.

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.