Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 7,208 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Welch & Forbes LLC reduced its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 1.3% during the 1st quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 556,244 shares of the company's stock after selling 7,208 shares during the period. Welch & Forbes LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $83,403,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth approximately $28,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at about $31,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $33,000. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company's stock.

PepsiCo Trading Up 7.5%

Shares of PepsiCo stock traded up $10.15 during trading hours on Thursday, hitting $145.50. The company's stock had a trading volume of 21,838,990 shares, compared to its average volume of 7,194,833. The company has a market capitalization of $199.50 billion, a PE ratio of 21.38, a P/E/G ratio of 4.18 and a beta of 0.45. The business has a fifty day moving average of $131.69 and a 200 day moving average of $141.29. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13. 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 posted its earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.12 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.28% and a net margin of 10.24%. The firm had revenue of $22.73 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts' expectations of $22.28 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $2.28 EPS. The firm's revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts forecast 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 given a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.91%. This is an increase from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo's payout ratio is currently 83.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

PEP has been the subject of a number of research analyst reports. Citigroup dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Wells Fargo & Company reaffirmed an "equal weight" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday. Morgan Stanley reiterated an "equal weight" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $139.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, July 10th. Finally, UBS Group reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, sixteen have issued a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.00.

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.