High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC Has $5.26 Million Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC lowered its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 3.3% during the first quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 30,031 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,036 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises approximately 1.7% of High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 13th largest holding. High Net Worth Advisory Group LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $5,256,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

Several other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PEP. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,001,928 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,227,287,000 after purchasing an additional 578,083 shares in the last quarter. Norges Bank bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $2,686,139,000. California Public Employees Retirement System lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 17.9% during the 4th quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 9,664,323 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,641,389,000 after acquiring an additional 1,470,064 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,954,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,909,000 after buying an additional 1,345,065 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 15.1% in the 4th quarter. Massachusetts Financial Services Co. MA now owns 8,421,163 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,430,250,000 after purchasing an additional 1,105,127 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

NASDAQ:PEP traded up $0.97 during mid-day trading on Monday, hitting $168.25. 430,826 shares of the stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,484,418. The firm’s 50-day simple moving average is $173.71 and its 200 day simple moving average is $170.36. The stock has a market capitalization of $231.31 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 25.15, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.72 and a beta of 0.52. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $155.83 and a fifty-two week high of $192.38. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a current ratio of 0.86.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.09. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 57.37%. The firm had revenue of $18.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.08 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the company posted $1.50 EPS. The company’s revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.22%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 81.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have issued reports on PEP. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, April 23rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 target price on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Barclays lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $186.15.

Insider Transactions at PepsiCo

In other PepsiCo news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the stock in a transaction dated Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total transaction of $1,000,360.00. Following the completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,953 shares in the company, valued at approximately $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a document filed with the SEC, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo 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.