Fidelity National Financial Inc. Makes New $22.81 Million Investment in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Fidelity National Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor acquired 150,000 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $22,809,000. PepsiCo comprises 0.5% of Fidelity National Financial Inc.’s portfolio, making the stock its 11th biggest position.

Several other institutional investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the business. Howard Capital Management Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 2.0% in the 3rd quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 4,568 shares of the company’s stock valued at $777,000 after purchasing an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Morse Asset Management Inc acquired a new position in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth approximately $996,000. Invst LLC lifted its stake in PepsiCo by 4.6% in the third quarter. Invst LLC now owns 3,003 shares of the company’s stock valued at $511,000 after buying an additional 133 shares during the last quarter. Virtu Financial LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter worth approximately $1,611,000. Finally, Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 3.4% in the 3rd quarter. Te Ahumairangi Investment Management Ltd now owns 16,624 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,811,000 after acquiring an additional 550 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Trading Up 2.0 %

Shares of PEP opened at $142.84 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $138.33 and a twelve month high of $183.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The firm has a market capitalization of $195.88 billion, a P/E ratio of 20.55, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.49. The firm’s 50-day moving average is $148.16 and its two-hundred day moving average is $154.94.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period last year, the business posted $1.78 EPS. On average, research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.79%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 77.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

Several research analysts have issued reports on the stock. UBS Group lowered their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. BNP Paribas dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. Barclays cut PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research report on Tuesday, March 18th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $168.12.

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.