Connecticut Wealth Management LLC Trims Stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Connecticut Wealth Management LLC reduced its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 26.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 14,773 shares of the company’s stock after selling 5,378 shares during the period. Connecticut Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $2,246,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PEP. Tallon Kerry Patrick purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $224,000. Pure Financial Advisors LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 23.6% during the 4th quarter. Pure Financial Advisors LLC now owns 6,312 shares of the company’s stock worth $960,000 after acquiring an additional 1,207 shares during the last quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 56.3% during the 4th quarter. Clear Harbor Asset Management LLC now owns 6,908 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,050,000 after acquiring an additional 2,487 shares during the last quarter. Transform Wealth LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth $274,000. Finally, Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 19.1% during the 4th quarter. Fort Washington Investment Advisors Inc. OH now owns 392,044 shares of the company’s stock worth $59,614,000 after acquiring an additional 62,808 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts have recently issued reports on PEP shares. UBS Group dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $175.00 to $169.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. Royal Bank of Canada reaffirmed a “sector perform” rating and set a $163.00 price objective on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, April 22nd. Bank of America lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, April 25th. Jefferies Financial Group downgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and lowered their price target for the stock from $171.00 to $170.00 in a research note on Wednesday, March 12th. Finally, BNP Paribas lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have assigned a hold rating and four have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP opened at $130.15 on Thursday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $127.87 and a 12 month high of $182.13. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company has a 50-day moving average price of $140.35 and a 200-day moving average price of $148.94. The company has a market cap of $178.45 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 18.73, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing the consensus estimate of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The company had revenue of $17.92 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the prior year, the firm earned $1.61 EPS. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be issued a $1.4225 dividend. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.37%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is 83.68%.

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.