MV Capital Management Inc. Reduces Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

MV Capital Management Inc. decreased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 24.3% in the first quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 2,095 shares of the company’s stock after selling 673 shares during the quarter. MV Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $314,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also modified their holdings of the business. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Collier Financial acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $31,000. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Up 1.4%

Shares of PEP opened at $131.83 on Wednesday. The stock has a market capitalization of $180.75 billion, a PE ratio of 18.97, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.45. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $127.75 and a 1 year high of $180.91. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. The company’s 50-day simple moving average is $135.37 and its 200-day simple moving average is $145.74.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The business had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $17.81 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.61 EPS. The firm’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. Analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Investors of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 4.32%. This is a positive change from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 83.68%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several research analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. UBS Group lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Monday, April 28th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. upped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $163.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One investment 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 data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $160.69.

About PepsiCo

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.