Private Advisor Group LLC Has $23.62 Million Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Private Advisor Group LLC lowered its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 6.3% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 157,513 shares of the company's stock after selling 10,613 shares during the period. Private Advisor Group LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $23,618,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company's stock valued at $9,031,000 after buying an additional 6,574 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.5% in the fourth quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 470,387 shares of the company's stock valued at $71,527,000 after buying an additional 11,538 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 22.7% during the fourth quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,449 shares of the company's stock worth $677,000 after purchasing an additional 824 shares during the last quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans increased its position in PepsiCo by 12.8% during the fourth quarter. Thrivent Financial for Lutherans now owns 122,510 shares of the company's stock worth $18,767,000 after purchasing an additional 13,857 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Loudon Investment Management LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 6.5% during the fourth quarter. Loudon Investment Management LLC now owns 9,309 shares of the company's stock worth $1,416,000 after purchasing an additional 565 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company's stock.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities research analysts have issued reports on PEP shares. Dbs Bank downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Cowen reiterated a "hold" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday. Royal Bank Of Canada reiterated a "sector perform" rating and set a $148.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, June 24th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $139.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Thursday, July 10th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $157.93.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PepsiCo stock traded down $2.20 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $143.24. 13,738,009 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 7,239,591. The firm has a market cap of $196.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.38 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.78 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The firm's 50-day simple moving average is $132.23 and its two-hundred day simple moving average is $141.11. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last announced its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a net margin of 8.23% and a return on equity of 57.81%. The company had revenue of $22.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.28 billion. During the same period last year, the company posted $2.28 earnings per share. The business's revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th were given a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 103.64%.

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.