VELA Investment Management LLC Buys 12,463 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

VELA Investment Management LLC lifted its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 71.1% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 29,980 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 12,463 shares during the period. PepsiCo comprises approximately 1.4% of VELA Investment Management LLC's holdings, making the stock its 15th largest holding. VELA Investment Management LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,495,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of PEP. Brighton Jones LLC grew its position in PepsiCo by 12.4% during the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company's stock worth $9,031,000 after acquiring an additional 6,574 shares during the last quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG boosted its position in PepsiCo by 2.5% in the 4th 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. Assetmark Inc. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 37.6% in the 4th quarter. Assetmark Inc. now owns 56,108 shares of the company's stock valued at $8,532,000 after buying an additional 15,328 shares during the last quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo by 22.7% in the 4th quarter. Proficio Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,449 shares of the company's stock valued at $677,000 after buying an additional 824 shares during the last quarter. Finally, E Fund Management Co. Ltd. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 41.9% in the 4th quarter. E Fund Management Co. Ltd. now owns 31,200 shares of the company's stock valued at $4,744,000 after buying an additional 9,217 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.7%

Shares of PEP traded down $0.91 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $135.58. The stock had a trading volume of 4,941,378 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,059,939. 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 50 day simple moving average of $131.40 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $142.26. The firm has a market cap of $185.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 19.94, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.45. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.60 and a twelve month high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). The company had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 58.28%. PepsiCo's revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 EPS. On average, analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.20%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's payout ratio is currently 83.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. 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. Morgan Stanley decreased their price objective 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. Bank of America decreased 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. Barclays reduced their price target 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. Finally, Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. One 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 stock. According to data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $159.75.

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.