GWN Securities Inc. Reduces Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

GWN Securities Inc. lowered its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 55.3% during the third quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 3,818 shares of the company’s stock after selling 4,724 shares during the period. GWN Securities Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $545,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,031,000 after acquiring an additional 6,574 shares during the period. Caxton Associates LLP purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the first quarter worth approximately $251,000. Fiduciary Alliance LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 5.4% during the second quarter. Fiduciary Alliance LLC now owns 12,524 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,654,000 after purchasing an additional 646 shares during the period. Krilogy Financial LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter valued at $1,630,000. Finally, Berkshire Bank lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 23.1% in the 2nd quarter. Berkshire Bank now owns 10,882 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,437,000 after acquiring an additional 2,042 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Trading Up 1.7%

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $145.92 on Thursday. The company has a market capitalization of $199.52 billion, a PE ratio of 27.74, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.70 and a beta of 0.42. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $127.60 and a 52-week high of $160.15. The stock has a fifty day simple moving average of $145.45 and a 200-day simple moving average of $144.49. The company has a quick ratio of 0.72, a current ratio of 0.91 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 5th were paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.9%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 108.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Piper Sandler lifted their price target on PepsiCo from $161.00 to $172.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Tuesday, December 9th. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price objective on PepsiCo from $163.00 to $164.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Tuesday, December 9th. DZ Bank upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and set a $167.00 target price on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, October 21st. Finally, Citigroup increased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $165.00 to $170.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Wednesday, December 17th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, twelve have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $158.58.

About PepsiCo

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.