PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP Holdings Decreased by Russell Investments Group Ltd.

Russell Investments Group Ltd. decreased its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 5.0% during the 3rd quarter, Holdings Channel reports. The firm owned 1,803,382 shares of the company’s stock after selling 95,506 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $229,181,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PEP. Evergreen Advisors LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo during the first quarter worth approximately $25,000. Montgomery Financial Services LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the second quarter valued at approximately $25,000. Next Level Wealth Planning LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter valued at approximately $26,000. Atlatl Advisers LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. Finally, Osterweis Capital Management Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 2nd quarter worth approximately $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PepsiCo stock opened at $142.26 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $123.47 and a 12 month high of $171.48. The stock’s 50 day moving average is $133.53 and its 200-day moving average is $145.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.94, a quick ratio of 0.76 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.90. The company has a market capitalization of $193.86 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 17.87, a PEG ratio of 4.28 and a beta of 0.31.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Wednesday, October 7th. The company reported $2.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.29 by $0.05. The company had revenue of $25.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $24.95 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 53.08% and a net margin of 11.09%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was up 5.6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $2.29 earnings per share. Equities research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.42 EPS for the current year.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of equities research analysts recently weighed in on PEP shares. TD Cowen dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $145.00 to $133.00 and set a “hold” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, September 28th. Morgan Stanley set a $145.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, October 9th. Citigroup reiterated a “buy” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, October 9th. Evercore decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $135.00 in a report on Wednesday, September 30th. Finally, Royal Bank Of Canada dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $161.00 to $150.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a Strong Buy rating, four have assigned a Buy rating, fourteen have assigned a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $143.28.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PepsiCo news, CEO Ramon Laguarta sold 30,000 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, October 21st. The stock was sold at an average price of $135.13, for a total transaction of $4,053,900.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer owned 491,645 shares in the company, valued at $66,435,988.85. This trade represents a 5.75% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is available at this hyperlink. Also, Director Robert Pohlad bought 184,646 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction dated Wednesday, October 14th. The shares were purchased at an average cost of $128.28 per share, with a total value of $23,686,388.88. Following the acquisition, the director directly owned 433,009 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $55,546,394.52. This represents a 74.35% increase in their position. The disclosure for this purchase is available in the SEC filing. Corporate insiders own 0.12% of the company’s stock.

Key PepsiCo News

Investors following PEP have been watching these news items:

• Positive Sentiment: Wall Street analysts remain moderately optimistic about PepsiCo’s prospects despite its underperformance over the past year, offering some support for the longer-term outlook. PepsiCo Stock Outlook: Is Wall Street Bullish or Bearish?
• Positive Sentiment: New seasonal flavors for Lay’s, Doritos, Cheetos and Pepsi could help refresh the product lineup and attract holiday shoppers, though the article provides no sales outlook. PepsiCo launches new holiday flavors
• Neutral Sentiment: PepsiCo plans to eliminate about 1,000 North American jobs as part of a turnaround effort backed by activist investor Elliott. The cuts aim to simplify operations and improve productivity, but the financial benefit is not yet specified. PepsiCo plans 1,000 North America job cuts

PepsiCo Profile

PepsiCo, Inc. is a global food and beverage company that develops, manufactures, markets and distributes a broad range of products. Its portfolio includes snacks such as Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, as well as beverages including Pepsi, Gatorade and Mountain Dew. The company was formed in 1965 through the merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay. Its products are sold in more than 200 countries and territories through retail, food-service and other distribution channels. PepsiCo is headquartered in Purchase, New York.