Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. Boosts Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc. increased its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 69.8% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 117,127 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 48,149 shares during the period. Oppenheimer Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $17,562,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $224,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 12.4% during the fourth 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 in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at $9,268,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG increased its holdings in shares of 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 acquiring an additional 11,538 shares in the last quarter. Finally, TCW Group Inc. increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 18.4% during the fourth quarter. TCW Group Inc. now owns 470,596 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,559,000 after acquiring an additional 73,083 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEP traded up $0.02 on Monday, hitting $129.09. The stock had a trading volume of 12,835,321 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,815,709. The stock has a market cap of $176.99 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.98, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.46. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13. The business's 50-day simple moving average is $132.83 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $143.63. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.75 and a 52-week high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted 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 company had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. During the same period last year, the business earned $1.61 EPS. The firm's quarterly revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business 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. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.41%. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.68%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several equities analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Barclays reduced their price target on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Monday, April 28th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and reduced their price target for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. Dbs Bank cut PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research report on Friday, May 9th. Bank of America dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. increased their price objective on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a "neutral" rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company 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.