GenTrust LLC Raises Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

GenTrust LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 6.3% in the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 1,450 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 86 shares during the quarter. GenTrust LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $222,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the company. State Street Corp boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 5.1% in the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,738,429,000 after buying an additional 2,775,679 shares in the last quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 1.8% in the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 30,497,268 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,170,529,000 after buying an additional 543,558 shares in the last quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 5.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,360,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,632,413,000 after purchasing an additional 1,125,059 shares during the period. Bank of New York Mellon Corp boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 5.2% during the fourth quarter. Bank of New York Mellon Corp now owns 14,013,158 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,130,841,000 after purchasing an additional 689,383 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 21.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently weighed in on the company. StockNews.com lowered PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Citigroup dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, HSBC decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.47.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP opened at $152.02 on Friday. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $148.57 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $161.73. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company has a market cap of $208.50 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.87, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $141.51 and a 12-month high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The firm had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.57%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.99%.

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.