Sabal Trust CO Purchases 3,843 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Sabal Trust CO raised its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 2.5% during the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 156,983 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 3,843 shares during the period. Sabal Trust CO's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $23,538,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the stock. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $31,000. Summit Securities Group LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $33,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $38,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Up 2.2%

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded up $2.82 during trading hours on Friday, hitting $131.04. The company's stock had a trading volume of 26,530,795 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,977,393. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $127.60 and a 52 week high of $180.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The company has a market capitalization of $179.67 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.45. The firm's fifty day moving average price is $132.07 and its 200 day moving average price is $143.22.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings results 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 net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 58.28%. The business had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. The company's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.34%. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's payout ratio is currently 83.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research firms recently commented on PEP. Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and dropped their price target for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Dbs Bank cut shares of PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. UBS Group dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the stock a "neutral" rating in a research note on Monday, April 21st. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada reaffirmed a "sector perform" rating and set a $148.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $159.75.

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.