DnB Asset Management AS Raises Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

DnB Asset Management AS boosted its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) by 5.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor owned 628,430 shares of the company's stock after buying an additional 35,218 shares during the quarter. DnB Asset Management AS's holdings in PepsiCo were worth $95,559,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

Other institutional investors and hedge funds have also bought and sold shares of the company. Vanguard Group Inc. lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.0% in the 4th quarter. Vanguard Group Inc. now owns 133,371,504 shares of the company's stock valued at $20,280,471,000 after acquiring an additional 1,376,133 shares during the last quarter. State Street Corp increased its stake in PepsiCo by 5.1% in the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company's stock worth $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 1.8% during the third quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 30,497,268 shares of the company's stock valued at $5,170,529,000 after purchasing an additional 543,558 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 18.1% in the fourth quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 25,217,043 shares of the company's stock worth $3,834,504,000 after purchasing an additional 3,856,193 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Norges Bank purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $2,729,565,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

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Analyst Ratings Changes

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent analyst reports. UBS Group cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a "buy" rating on the stock in a report on Thursday, January 16th. Wells Fargo & Company reduced their price target on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an "equal weight" rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. CICC Research reiterated a "market perform" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, February 7th. StockNews.com downgraded PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group cut shares of PepsiCo from a "buy" rating to a "hold" rating and cut their price target for the company from $171.00 to $170.00 in a report on Wednesday, March 12th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, the company currently has an average rating of "Hold" and an average price target of $169.88.

PepsiCo Stock Up 0.7 %

Shares of PepsiCo stock traded up $1.08 during midday trading on Monday, hitting $150.35. The company had a trading volume of 3,241,712 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,865,853. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. The stock has a market capitalization of $206.21 billion, a P/E ratio of 21.63, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a 50 day moving average of $149.25 and a 200 day moving average of $157.91.

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

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.60%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo's dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.99%.

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.