Russell Investments Group Ltd. Has $237.67 Million Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. reduced its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 4.4% during the 4th quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 1,399,739 shares of the company’s stock after selling 64,673 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises about 0.4% of Russell Investments Group Ltd.’s portfolio, making the stock its 27th biggest position. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned 0.10% of PepsiCo worth $237,671,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Several other hedge funds have also modified their holdings of PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 80.5% in the fourth 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 during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc bought a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 61.7% in the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock valued at $41,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Citigroup raised shares of PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the company from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Morgan Stanley raised shares of PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Finally, Barclays lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday. 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 MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $187.42.

PepsiCo Stock Down 0.6 %

PEP stock traded down $1.10 during midday trading on Friday, hitting $175.58. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 4,472,102 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,365,961. The stock has a market capitalization of $241.39 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.40, a PEG ratio of 2.88 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s fifty day moving average price is $169.40 and its 200 day moving average price is $167.86. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $155.83 and a twelve month high of $196.88. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.68.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.09. The company had revenue of $18.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.08 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 57.37%. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the business earned $1.50 EPS. As a group, equities research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.265 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $5.06 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 2.88%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 76.09%.

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.