Baker Avenue Asset Management LP Reduces Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Baker Avenue Asset Management LP decreased its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 8.2% in the first quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 5,485 shares of the company’s stock after selling 487 shares during the period. Baker Avenue Asset Management LP’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $822,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Elite Financial Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the first quarter worth about $28,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth $31,000. GKV Capital Management Co. Inc. bought a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth about $38,000. Bridge Generations Wealth Management LLC purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $38,000. Finally, Sunbeam Capital Management LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $47,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently commented on PEP shares. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Morgan Stanley raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $153.00 to $165.00 and gave the stock an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Friday, July 18th. Dbs Bank lowered PepsiCo from a “strong-buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Friday, May 9th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, UBS Group cut their target price on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $158.73.

PepsiCo Price Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $139.28 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $190.69 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.37, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12, a current ratio of 0.78 and a quick ratio of 0.60. The company has a 50 day moving average price of $134.63 and a 200-day moving average price of $140.87. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, July 17th. The company reported $2.12 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.03 by $0.09. The firm had revenue of $22.73 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.28 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.81% and a net margin of 8.23%. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $2.28 EPS. Equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a yield of 4.1%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 103.64%.

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.