PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Shares Acquired by Verity Asset Management Inc.

Verity Asset Management Inc. boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 101.2% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 7,384 shares of the company's stock after purchasing an additional 3,714 shares during the quarter. Verity Asset Management Inc.'s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,107,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently bought and sold shares of PEP. TAGStone Capital Inc. grew its stake in PepsiCo by 2.8% in the fourth quarter. TAGStone Capital Inc. now owns 2,527 shares of the company's stock valued at $388,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 0.9% in the fourth quarter. Lokken Investment Group LLC now owns 7,699 shares of the company's stock valued at $1,171,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 4.9% during the 1st quarter. Legacy Financial Group LLC now owns 1,514 shares of the company's stock worth $227,000 after acquiring an additional 71 shares during the period. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 37.5% during the 4th quarter. Atlantic Private Wealth LLC now owns 275 shares of the company's stock worth $42,000 after acquiring an additional 75 shares during the period. Finally, Pflug Koory LLC lifted its holdings in PepsiCo by 1.0% during the 1st quarter. Pflug Koory LLC now owns 7,750 shares of the company's stock worth $1,162,000 after purchasing an additional 76 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Up 1.0%

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded up $1.39 during trading on Wednesday, reaching $136.65. 4,225,177 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 7,011,385. The business's fifty day simple moving average is $131.47 and its 200-day simple moving average is $142.58. 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 firm has a market capitalization of $187.36 billion, a PE ratio of 20.09, a P/E/G ratio of 4.13 and a beta of 0.45. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last released its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (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 firm had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. PepsiCo's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were paid a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.16%. This is a positive change from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 83.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities analysts have recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, April 24th. Citigroup dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and decreased their target price for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research report on Wednesday, March 12th. Barclays dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Finally, Dbs Bank downgraded PepsiCo from a "strong-buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Friday, May 9th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $159.75.

PepsiCo Company 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.