Narwhal Capital Management Cuts Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Narwhal Capital Management lowered its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 22.2% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 44,794 shares of the company's stock after selling 12,818 shares during the quarter. Narwhal Capital Management's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $6,716,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also made changes to their positions in PEP. Brighton Jones LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,031,000 after acquiring an additional 6,574 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its stake in PepsiCo by 2.5% during the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 470,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,527,000 after purchasing an additional 11,538 shares in the last quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 8.5% during the fourth quarter. Wealthspire Advisors LLC now owns 35,819 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,447,000 after purchasing an additional 2,819 shares during the last quarter. World Equity Group Inc. grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 82.9% in the 4th quarter. World Equity Group Inc. now owns 2,822 shares of the company's stock worth $429,000 after buying an additional 1,279 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Black Diamond Financial LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 6.5% in the 4th quarter. Black Diamond Financial LLC now owns 4,670 shares of the company's stock worth $710,000 after buying an additional 285 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company's stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PEP stock opened at $129.09 on Tuesday. The company's 50-day simple moving average is $132.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.63. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.65. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $127.75 and a one year high of $180.91. The company has a market capitalization of $176.99 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.46.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 EPS for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.61 earnings per share. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors 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 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 yield of 4.41%. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio is 83.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on PEP shares. JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a report on Monday, April 21st. Barclays dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Dbs Bank downgraded PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $163.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average 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.

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