Van ECK Associates Corp Boosts Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Van ECK Associates Corp increased its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 360.0% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 1,697,742 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 1,328,672 shares during the quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp owned 0.12% of PepsiCo worth $258,158,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other large investors have also recently bought and sold shares of the company. Avion Wealth boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 81.3% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 580 shares of the company’s stock worth $88,000 after purchasing an additional 260 shares during the last quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc lifted its position in PepsiCo by 2.4% during the fourth quarter. Marks Group Wealth Management Inc now owns 3,394 shares of the company’s stock worth $516,000 after buying an additional 79 shares in the last quarter. Kentucky Trust Co acquired a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $1,681,000. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 6.2% in the 4th quarter. Viewpoint Capital Management LLC now owns 16,600 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,524,000 after acquiring an additional 976 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Certuity LLC raised its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 33.9% during the 4th quarter. Certuity LLC now owns 4,222 shares of the company’s stock worth $642,000 after acquiring an additional 1,070 shares during the period. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on the stock. JPMorgan Chase & Co. cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. UBS Group cut their target price on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research note on Thursday, January 16th. Morgan Stanley lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. BNP Paribas reduced their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company lowered their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $171.47.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock opened at $143.99 on Thursday. The firm has a 50-day moving average of $150.73 and a two-hundred day moving average of $163.68. The firm has a market capitalization of $197.48 billion, a PE ratio of 20.72, a P/E/G ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $141.51 and a one year high of $183.41. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate 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%. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the company posted $1.78 earnings per share. On average, analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 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 3.76%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is 77.99%.

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.