West Tower Group LLC Invests $272,000 in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

West Tower Group LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in the 3rd quarter, according to the company in its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor acquired 1,600 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $272,000.

Several other large investors also recently made changes to their positions in the business. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 4.4% in the second quarter. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares in the last quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 2.2% during the 2nd quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the company’s stock valued at $453,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 59.0% during the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Bank of Stockton grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 2.3% during the 2nd quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 2,716 shares of the company’s stock valued at $448,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC grew its holdings in PepsiCo by 0.7% during the 2nd quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 8,982 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,481,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the subject of a number of recent analyst reports. StockNews.com raised shares of PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a report on Tuesday, November 5th. Bank of America decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $186.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a report on Thursday, October 10th. TD Cowen lowered shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating and decreased their price objective for the stock from $190.00 to $183.00 in a report on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, JPMorgan Chase & Co. decreased their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $183.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, October 9th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, ten have given a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price of $183.92.

PepsiCo Trading Up 0.6 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP opened at $163.05 on Tuesday. The company has a market cap of $223.70 billion, a PE ratio of 24.05, a P/E/G ratio of 3.02 and a beta of 0.53. The company’s 50-day moving average price is $168.73 and its 200 day moving average price is $170.78. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $155.85 and a fifty-two week high of $183.41. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.89 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 8th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.30 by $0.01. The firm had revenue of $23.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.86 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.18% and a return on equity of 57.32%. PepsiCo’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $2.25 EPS. Sell-side analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Investors of record on Friday, December 6th will be given a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.32%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 79.94%.

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.