Blue Trust Inc. Sells 800 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Blue Trust Inc. trimmed its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 1.9% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 41,892 shares of the company’s stock after selling 800 shares during the period. Blue Trust Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $6,281,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth $224,000. Brighton Jones LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 12.4% in the 4th quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company’s stock worth $9,031,000 after purchasing an additional 6,574 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA purchased a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $9,268,000. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG raised its position in PepsiCo by 2.5% in the 4th quarter. Bank Pictet & Cie Europe AG now owns 470,387 shares of the company’s stock valued at $71,527,000 after buying an additional 11,538 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Strategic Financial Concepts LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $162,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ PEP opened at $129.07 on Thursday. The company has a 50-day simple moving average of $133.80 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $144.52. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.75 and a 12-month high of $180.91. The firm has a market cap of $176.97 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.98, a PEG ratio of 3.71 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.13.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.24% and a return on equity of 58.28%. The company had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the company earned $1.61 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.41%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 83.68%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts recently commented on the company. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price target on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, April 24th. Bank of America lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $159.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Monday, April 21st. UBS Group decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. Finally, Citigroup decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $170.00 to $160.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Friday, April 25th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $160.69.

PepsiCo Company 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.