Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV Purchases 10,026 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 41.4% in the fourth quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 34,217 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 10,026 shares during the period. Nations Financial Group Inc. IA ADV’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $5,812,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.1% during the 4th quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 19,001,928 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,227,287,000 after buying an additional 578,083 shares during the last quarter. Northern Trust Corp boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.7% during the 3rd quarter. Northern Trust Corp now owns 16,878,022 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,859,812,000 after buying an additional 595,357 shares during the last quarter. Norges Bank acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth about $2,686,139,000. California Public Employees Retirement System boosted its stake 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 buying an additional 1,470,064 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. lifted its stake in PepsiCo by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,954,951 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,520,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345,065 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts recently issued reports on the stock. StockNews.com downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Barclays raised their target price 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. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Argus downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Six research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus price target of $187.58.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP traded down $1.28 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $177.99. 3,447,399 shares of the company’s stock were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 3,948,433. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.83 and a 52 week high of $192.38. The stock’s 50-day simple moving average is $174.57 and its 200-day simple moving average is $170.16. The firm has a market cap of $244.70 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.90 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, topping 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 company had revenue of $18.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.08 billion. During the same period last year, the firm earned $1.50 earnings per share. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.17 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.05%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 76.09%.

Insider Transactions at PepsiCo

In related news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of PepsiCo stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total value of $1,000,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now directly owns 53,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which is accessible through this hyperlink. Insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

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.