Natixis Acquires 355,508 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Natixis increased its holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 120.3% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 650,938 shares of the company's stock after acquiring an additional 355,508 shares during the period. PepsiCo comprises about 0.6% of Natixis' holdings, making the stock its 22nd largest holding. Natixis' holdings in PepsiCo were worth $98,982,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors have also recently bought and sold shares of PEP. Collier Financial purchased a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC acquired a new stake in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $30,000. Finally, Summit Securities Group LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $33,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock traded up $2.75 during trading on Friday, hitting $142.84. 6,052,161 shares of the stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 6,108,169. The stock has a market cap of $195.88 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 20.55, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a 50 day simple moving average of $148.16 and a 200 day simple moving average of $154.74. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $138.33 and a one year high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last posted its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping analysts' consensus estimates of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm earned $1.78 earnings per share. The business's revenue was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. Equities analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th were given a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.79%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 77.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several research firms have recently issued reports on PEP. Barclays downgraded PepsiCo from an "overweight" rating to an "equal weight" rating and decreased their price target for the stock from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. BNP Paribas decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a research note on Thursday, February 6th. CICC Research reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and five have issued a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $168.12.

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.