Phoenix Financial Ltd. Sells 2,365 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Phoenix Financial Ltd. trimmed its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 7.6% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 28,803 shares of the company’s stock after selling 2,365 shares during the quarter. Phoenix Financial Ltd.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,332,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $28,000. Elite Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the first quarter worth $28,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Measured Risk Portfolios Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $31,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of research analysts recently commented on PEP shares. Cowen reaffirmed a “hold” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Citigroup boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $160.00 to $168.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research note on Friday, July 18th. UBS Group dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reaffirmed a “buy” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, July 17th. Finally, Barclays boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $132.00 to $144.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research note on Monday, July 21st. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have given a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $158.73.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $143.45 on Friday. The stock has a market cap of $196.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.13, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.85 and a beta of 0.45. The company has a current ratio of 0.78, a quick ratio of 0.60 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.12. The stock’s 50-day moving average is $133.58 and its 200-day moving average is $141.03. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $180.91.

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

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 5th will be issued a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.97%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 5th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 103.64%.

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.