Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators Buys 275 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 3.2% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The firm owned 8,847 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 275 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo accounts for about 0.7% of Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ investment portfolio, making the stock its 24th biggest position. Deseret Mutual Benefit Administrators’ holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,345,000 as of its most recent filing with the SEC.

Several other hedge funds have also made changes to their positions in the stock. Highline Wealth Partners LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 3rd quarter valued at $28,000. Collier Financial acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new position in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Finally, Rakuten Securities Inc. boosted its holdings in PepsiCo by 93.2% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Stock Up 3.0 %

Shares of PEP opened at $153.50 on Friday. The firm has a market capitalization of $210.53 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.09, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54. 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 business’s fifty day moving average price is $148.75 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $162.39.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating 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 business had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter last year, the business earned $1.78 earnings per share. The firm’s quarterly revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. On average, analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.53%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is currently 77.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

PEP has been the subject of a number of recent research reports. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their target price on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price objective 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. Royal Bank of Canada began coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. They issued a $172.00 target price on the stock. Morgan Stanley dropped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Barclays reduced their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $171.47.

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.