Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC Has $22.56 Million Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC trimmed its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 1.5% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 150,475 shares of the company's stock after selling 2,323 shares during the period. PepsiCo accounts for about 2.2% of Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC's portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest holding. Villere ST Denis J & Co. LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $22,562,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the business. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $31,000. Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $33,000. Finally, GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $38,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Royal Bank Of Canada restated a "sector perform" rating and set a $148.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday. Morgan Stanley lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $168.00 to $153.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group lowered PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, Bank of America lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a "neutral" rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average target price of $159.75.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock traded up $2.82 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $131.04. 26,530,795 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 6,977,394. The stock has a market capitalization of $179.67 billion, a PE ratio of 19.27, a P/E/G ratio of 3.68 and a beta of 0.45. 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 fifty day moving average price of $131.83 and a 200 day moving average price of $143.02.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing analysts' consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). The firm had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $17.81 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The company's revenue was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.34%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is presently 83.68%.

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.