MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC Acquires New Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund acquired 6,435 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $1,093,000. PepsiCo comprises approximately 1.0% of MeadowBrook Investment Advisors LLC’s holdings, making the stock its 29th largest holding.

Several other institutional investors have also modified their holdings of PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its position in PepsiCo by 80.5% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC purchased a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.6 %

Shares of PEP traded up $1.05 during trading hours on Tuesday, reaching $176.87. The stock had a trading volume of 706,552 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,658,468. The firm has a 50-day simple moving average of $170.30 and a 200 day simple moving average of $168.57. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.83 and a 12 month high of $196.88. The company has a market capitalization of $243.16 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared 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 is a positive change from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.06%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. Citigroup upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and upped their target price for the company from $180.00 to $195.00 in a report on Monday, February 12th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 24th. Royal Bank of Canada restated a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Monday, February 12th. Barclays upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $185.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Wedbush reissued an “outperform” rating and set a $195.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.42.

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.