Raymond James Financial Inc. Invests $589.31 Million in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Raymond James Financial Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP - Free Report) in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm purchased 3,875,487 shares of the company's stock, valued at approximately $589,307,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. owned about 0.28% of PepsiCo at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of PEP. Swedbank AB increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 211.4% during the third quarter. Swedbank AB now owns 2,345,467 shares of the company's stock valued at $398,847,000 after acquiring an additional 1,592,343 shares during the last quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.0% during the third quarter. Howard Capital Management Group LLC now owns 4,568 shares of the company's stock valued at $777,000 after acquiring an additional 90 shares during the last quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 205.1% during the third quarter. Catalyst Capital Advisors LLC now owns 4,055 shares of the company's stock valued at $690,000 after acquiring an additional 2,726 shares during the last quarter. United Advisor Group LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 25.5% during the third quarter. United Advisor Group LLC now owns 2,625 shares of the company's stock valued at $446,000 after acquiring an additional 534 shares during the last quarter. Finally, HF Advisory Group LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the third quarter valued at approximately $403,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Down 0.2 %

Shares of PEP stock opened at $153.88 on Thursday. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a current ratio of 0.82. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41. The company has a market capitalization of $211.05 billion, a PE ratio of 22.14, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52. The business's fifty day moving average is $148.73 and its 200 day moving average is $161.14.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP - Get Free Report) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (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 the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $1.78 earnings per share. The firm's revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.52%. PepsiCo's payout ratio is 77.99%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEP has been the subject of several research reports. BNP Paribas reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a "neutral" rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. CICC Research reissued a "market perform" rating on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Friday, February 7th. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an "equal weight" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a "buy" rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, January 22nd. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company's stock. According to MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of "Hold" and a consensus target price of $171.47.

PepsiCo Company 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.

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