NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC Increases Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 2.5% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 129,464 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,213 shares during the quarter. NorthCrest Asset Manangement LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $19,686,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PEP. Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $2,729,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth about $589,307,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its position in PepsiCo by 18.1% in the 4th 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. Universal Beteiligungs und Servicegesellschaft mbH purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $221,297,000. Finally, Vanguard Group Inc. grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 1.0% during the fourth quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 133,371,504 shares of the company's stock worth $20,280,471,000 after buying an additional 1,376,133 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ PEP traded up $1.25 during trading on Thursday, reaching $131.92. The company's stock had a trading volume of 6,655,903 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,521,917. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.75 and a twelve month high of $180.91. The firm has a market cap of $180.87 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.98, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. The business's fifty day moving average price is $138.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $147.72. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82.

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 company 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 for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.61 earnings per share. As a group, analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS 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 $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 6th. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.31%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 83.68%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have commented on the stock. Citigroup lowered their price target 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. Morgan Stanley lowered their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group cut PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. UBS Group lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price 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. One 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. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of "Hold" and a consensus price target of $160.69.

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.