Westmount Partners LLC Sells 1,948 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Westmount Partners LLC cut its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 28.1% in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 4,978 shares of the company's stock after selling 1,948 shares during the quarter. Westmount Partners LLC's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $746,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $28,000. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 1st quarter valued at $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $31,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 target price on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut 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. Bank of America cut their target price on PepsiCo from $150.00 to $145.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Friday. Citigroup cut their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Barclays cut their target price on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a research report on Monday, April 28th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $158.19.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PEP opened at $135.26 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.60 and a 12-month high of $180.91. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $131.49 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $141.58. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13. The stock has a market cap of $185.45 billion, a PE ratio of 19.89, a PEG ratio of 4.23 and a beta of 0.45.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last issued 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). 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 analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.61 EPS. PepsiCo's revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% on a year-over-year basis. Analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th were issued a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.21%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 6th. This is a boost from PepsiCo's previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo's dividend 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.

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