Viewpoint Capital Management LLC Increases Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Viewpoint Capital Management LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 6.2% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 16,600 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 976 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises 1.3% of Viewpoint Capital Management LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest position. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $2,524,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in PEP. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 17,113.0% during the 3rd quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,220,385 shares of the company’s stock worth $547,626,000 after acquiring an additional 3,201,676 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp raised its position in PepsiCo by 5.1% during the third quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 21.1% in the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares in the last quarter. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 211.4% during the 3rd quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company’s stock valued at $398,847,000 after purchasing an additional 1,592,343 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 5.6% during the 3rd quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,360,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,632,413,000 after buying an additional 1,125,059 shares in the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PepsiCo stock opened at $145.64 on Wednesday. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $151.05 and its 200 day moving average is $163.87. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.82. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $141.51 and a one year high of $183.41. The stock has a market cap of $199.75 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.96, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The business had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.89 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.72%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research firms have weighed in on PEP. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 price target on the stock. Evercore ISI dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. HSBC decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, CICC Research reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, February 7th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

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.