PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Stock Position Lowered by Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC

Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC decreased its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.9% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The institutional investor owned 5,799 shares of the company’s stock after selling 114 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo makes up approximately 0.6% of Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 23rd largest position. Prairie Sky Financial Group LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $985,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. DHJJ Financial Advisors Ltd. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter worth approximately $25,000. Pacifica Partners Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at $27,000. West Tower Group LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at $36,000. VitalStone Financial LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at about $46,000. Finally, Pacific Center for Financial Services acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the first quarter valued at about $47,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PEP stock traded up $1.44 during trading on Friday, hitting $175.01. The company had a trading volume of 5,710,539 shares, compared to its average volume of 6,548,546. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $168.10 and its two-hundred day moving average is $167.99. The stock has a market capitalization of $240.55 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.64, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.53. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.83 and a 52 week high of $196.88.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.72 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $27.84 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $28.40 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.03% and a net margin of 9.92%. The business’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm posted $1.67 earnings per share. As a group, analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, April 1st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 1st will be given a dividend of $1.265 per share. This represents a $5.06 annualized dividend and a yield of 2.89%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Thursday, February 29th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.02%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the stock. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 9th. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Monday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 target price for the company in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut shares of PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to a “neutral” rating and dropped their target price for the stock from $185.00 to $176.00 in a report on Tuesday, December 19th. Five equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $187.77.

PepsiCo 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.