Welch & Forbes LLC Sells 1,060 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Welch & Forbes LLC lowered its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 0.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the SEC. The institutional investor owned 591,301 shares of the company’s stock after selling 1,060 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises approximately 1.5% of Welch & Forbes LLC’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 17th biggest holding. Welch & Forbes LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $100,427,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its holdings in shares of 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 purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth lifted 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. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of PEP traded down $0.33 during trading hours on Monday, hitting $175.82. 3,576,177 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,716,585. The company has a market cap of $241.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.44, a P/E/G ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.52. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $155.83 and a fifty-two week high of $196.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The firm’s fifty day moving average is $170.30 and its 200 day moving average is $168.57.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released 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. The company had revenue of $18.25 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.08 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.37% and a net margin of 10.00%. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was up 2.3% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the prior year, the firm posted $1.50 EPS. On average, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.16 earnings per share for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.08%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 76.09%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of brokerages have recently issued reports on PEP. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and issued a $180.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Monday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. raised their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Barclays raised their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $185.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 25th. Finally, Morgan Stanley raised PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the stock currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target 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.