California Public Employees Retirement System Has $1.08 Billion Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

California Public Employees Retirement System lowered its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 9.2% during the fourth quarter, according to its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,070,236 shares of the company’s stock after selling 715,602 shares during the period. PepsiCo comprises about 0.7% of California Public Employees Retirement System’s portfolio, making the stock its 20th biggest position. California Public Employees Retirement System’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,075,100,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the company. Norges Bank bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $2,729,565,000. Raymond James Financial Inc. acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $589,307,000. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. lifted its stake 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 acquiring an additional 3,856,193 shares during the period. State Street Corp increased its position in PepsiCo by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares during the period. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. raised its holdings in PepsiCo by 21.1% during the 3rd quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,293,049,000 after purchasing an additional 2,264,445 shares during the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Royal Bank of Canada assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 price objective for the company. Morgan Stanley dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Evercore ISI cut their price target on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Barclays lowered shares of PepsiCo from an “overweight” rating to an “equal weight” rating and lowered their price objective for the company from $168.00 to $156.00 in a research note on Tuesday, March 18th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fourteen have given a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $169.88.

PepsiCo Price Performance

NASDAQ:PEP opened at $149.27 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $204.72 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.48, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52. 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 fifty day moving average of $149.25 and a 200 day moving average of $158.03. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52-week low of $141.51 and a 52-week high of $183.41.

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

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.63%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.99%.

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.