PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) Position Lifted by Clearbridge Investments LLC

Clearbridge Investments LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 26.9% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 1,755,099 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 372,419 shares during the quarter. Clearbridge Investments LLC owned approximately 0.13% of PepsiCo worth $266,880,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Other large investors have also modified their holdings of the company. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth about $28,000. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at approximately $30,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $33,000. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

PEP stock opened at $149.27 on Friday. The company has a market capitalization of $204.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52. The firm has a 50 day moving average of $149.25 and a two-hundred day moving average of $158.03. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $141.51 and a 12 month high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. The business 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%. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.63%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.99%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. CICC Research reissued a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 target price for the company. StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Barclays cut shares of PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the stock from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have issued a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $169.88.

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.