Ballentine Partners LLC Cuts Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Ballentine Partners LLC lowered its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 26.1% in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,999 shares of the company’s stock after selling 8,827 shares during the period. Ballentine Partners LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,123,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also bought and sold shares of the stock. Norges Bank bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at about $2,686,139,000. Flossbach Von Storch AG lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 67.2% during the first quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 4,560,007 shares of the company’s stock valued at $798,047,000 after buying an additional 1,832,385 shares during the last quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 125.2% in the 2nd quarter. PineStone Asset Management Inc. now owns 2,740,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $452,003,000 after buying an additional 1,523,631 shares in the last quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 17.7% in the 4th quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,954,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,909,000 after buying an additional 1,345,065 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Van ECK Associates Corp raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 429.3% during the 1st quarter. Van ECK Associates Corp now owns 1,454,793 shares of the company’s stock worth $254,603,000 after acquiring an additional 1,179,922 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded down $0.60 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $177.34. The company’s stock had a trading volume of 6,395,276 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,471,998. The firm has a market capitalization of $243.59 billion, a PE ratio of 25.74, a P/E/G ratio of 2.98 and a beta of 0.53. The stock has a fifty day moving average of $170.96 and a 200 day moving average of $171.15. PepsiCo, Inc. has a twelve month low of $155.83 and a twelve month high of $183.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.64, a current ratio of 0.83 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its quarterly earnings data on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.16 by $0.12. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.37% and a net margin of 10.34%. The business had revenue of $22.50 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.59 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business posted $2.09 EPS. The company’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. On average, equities analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, September 6th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.06%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 78.66%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several equities analysts have issued reports on the stock. Bank of America cut their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $210.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Monday, July 8th. Jefferies Financial Group dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $210.00 to $200.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Tuesday, July 9th. Morgan Stanley decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Royal Bank of Canada dropped their price target on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a “sector perform” rating on the stock in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, DZ Bank lowered shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and set a $183.00 price objective for the company. in a research report on Friday, July 19th. Seven research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $185.53.

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.