Ketron Financial Takes Position in PepsiCo, Inc. $PEP

Ketron Financial purchased a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund purchased 53,220 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $7,638,000. PepsiCo comprises approximately 2.5% of Ketron Financial’s portfolio, making the stock its 9th largest position.

Several other hedge funds have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 8.3% during the fourth quarter. Cypress Capital Management LLC WY now owns 838 shares of the company’s stock worth $121,000 after buying an additional 64 shares in the last quarter. United Bank lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 3.9% in the fourth quarter. United Bank now owns 1,717 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after buying an additional 65 shares in the last quarter. Koa Wealth Management LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo by 0.9% during the fourth quarter. Koa Wealth Management LLC now owns 8,007 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,149,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares during the last quarter. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 3.8% during the 4th quarter. Pettinga Financial Advisors LLC now owns 1,880 shares of the company’s stock valued at $270,000 after acquiring an additional 68 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 4.0% in the 3rd quarter. Tiemann Investment Advisors LLC now owns 1,807 shares of the company’s stock valued at $254,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

PepsiCo stock opened at $142.02 on Friday. The firm has a 50 day simple moving average of $150.15 and a 200-day simple moving average of $152.31. The stock has a market cap of $194.11 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.30, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.57 and a beta of 0.35. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.98, a current ratio of 0.90 and a quick ratio of 0.72. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $127.60 and a 1-year high of $171.48.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings results on Wednesday, April 15th. The company reported $1.61 EPS for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.55 by $0.06. The firm had revenue of $19.44 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $18.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 9.15% and a return on equity of 56.61%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 8.5% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter in the previous year, the company earned $1.48 EPS. On average, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.63 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Tuesday, June 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be paid a $1.48 dividend. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.42. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, June 5th. This represents a $5.92 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 4.2%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 92.94%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEP has been the topic of a number of research reports. UBS Group decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $186.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, April 7th. The Goldman Sachs Group increased their price target on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $183.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Friday, April 17th. Sanford C. Bernstein started coverage on PepsiCo in a research report on Thursday, June 11th. They set a “market perform” rating and a $143.00 price objective on the stock. Weiss Ratings reissued a “hold (c)” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Wednesday, April 8th. Finally, Wall Street Zen cut PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Saturday, April 18th. Eight analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has issued a Sell rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $167.10.

PepsiCo Profile

PepsiCo, Inc (NASDAQ: PEP) is a multinational food and beverage company headquartered in Purchase, New York. The company develops, manufactures, markets and sells a broad portfolio of branded food and beverage products, including carbonated and noncarbonated soft drinks, bottled water, sports drinks, juices, ready-to-drink teas and coffees, salty snacks, cereals, and other convenient foods. Its leading consumer brands include Pepsi, Mountain Dew, Gatorade, Tropicana, Quaker, Lay’s, Doritos and Cheetos, among others.

Formed through the 1965 merger of Pepsi-Cola and Frito-Lay, PepsiCo has grown into a global business with integrated manufacturing, distribution and marketing operations.