FourThought Financial Partners LLC Invests $11.69 Million in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

FourThought Financial Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund purchased 76,867 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $11,688,000. PepsiCo comprises 1.2% of FourThought Financial Partners LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 22nd biggest holding.

Other hedge funds have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Empowered Funds LLC grew its position in PepsiCo by 9.2% in the third quarter. Empowered Funds LLC now owns 99,785 shares of the company’s stock worth $16,968,000 after acquiring an additional 8,406 shares during the period. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 104.2% in the 4th quarter. Assenagon Asset Management S.A. now owns 1,705,574 shares of the company’s stock valued at $259,350,000 after purchasing an additional 870,451 shares during the last quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC raised its stake in PepsiCo by 11.0% during the 3rd quarter. Janus Henderson Group PLC now owns 350,225 shares of the company’s stock valued at $59,549,000 after acquiring an additional 34,633 shares during the last quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV increased its position in PepsiCo by 12.8% during the 4th quarter. Hudson Valley Investment Advisors Inc. ADV now owns 41,580 shares of the company’s stock worth $6,323,000 after purchasing an additional 4,712 shares during the period. Finally, IHT Wealth Management LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 19.3% during the 3rd quarter. IHT Wealth Management LLC now owns 32,267 shares of the company’s stock worth $5,493,000 after purchasing an additional 5,220 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.2 %

Shares of PEP stock opened at $153.85 on Tuesday. The company has a market capitalization of $211.01 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.14, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $141.51 and a 12-month high of $183.41. The firm has a fifty day moving average of $148.61 and a 200-day moving average of $161.98. The company has a quick ratio of 0.65, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. The firm had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities 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 will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be paid a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.52%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is 77.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of brokerages have weighed in on PEP. BNP Paribas reduced their price target on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com downgraded PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a $172.00 price target for the company. Morgan Stanley cut their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays cut their price target on PepsiCo from $158.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $171.47.

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.