Vest Financial LLC Raises Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Vest Financial LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 2.3% during the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The fund owned 404,684 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 8,988 shares during the quarter. Vest Financial LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $56,834,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Brighton Jones LLC increased its holdings in 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 acquiring an additional 6,574 shares in the last quarter. Caxton Associates LLP acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the first quarter valued at about $251,000. Sivia Capital Partners LLC grew its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 138.5% in the second quarter. Sivia Capital Partners LLC now owns 6,527 shares of the company’s stock valued at $862,000 after buying an additional 3,790 shares in the last quarter. Gries Financial LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 6.3% during the second quarter. Gries Financial LLC now owns 11,728 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,549,000 after purchasing an additional 695 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. boosted its position in PepsiCo by 6.9% in the 2nd quarter. Leonard Rickey Investment Advisors P.L.L.C. now owns 1,937 shares of the company’s stock valued at $256,000 after buying an additional 125 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Trading Up 0.9%

Shares of PEP stock opened at $147.66 on Wednesday. The company has a market capitalization of $201.90 billion, a P/E ratio of 28.07, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 4.79 and a beta of 0.42. The company has a current ratio of 0.91, a quick ratio of 0.72 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.26. The business’s 50 day moving average is $145.74 and its two-hundred day moving average is $144.89. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $127.60 and a twelve month high of $160.15.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Tuesday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 5th were issued a $1.4225 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, December 5th. This represents a $5.69 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.9%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 108.17%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of equities research analysts have issued reports on the company. BNP Paribas Exane raised PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to an “outperform” rating and set a $179.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $150.00 to $154.00 and gave the stock a “positive” rating in a research note on Friday, October 10th. UBS Group decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $172.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 14th. Wall Street Zen lowered PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, December 27th. Finally, Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Friday, January 9th. Ten analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, ten have issued a Hold rating and one has assigned a Sell rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $161.32.

PepsiCo Company Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.