Russell Investments Group Ltd. Purchases 358,092 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Russell Investments Group Ltd. increased its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 26.9% during the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 1,687,231 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 358,092 shares during the period. Russell Investments Group Ltd. owned approximately 0.12% of PepsiCo worth $256,511,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds also recently made changes to their positions in the stock. Collier Financial bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter worth approximately $28,000. WealthTrak Capital Management LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the fourth quarter valued at approximately $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth $30,000. Prudent Man Investment Management Inc. purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $30,000. Finally, Legacy Investment Solutions LLC purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter worth $31,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP stock opened at $146.61 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The company has a market cap of $201.05 billion, a PE ratio of 21.09, a P/E/G ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.49. The company has a current ratio of 0.82, a quick ratio of 0.65 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05. The company’s fifty day simple moving average is $149.33 and its 200-day simple moving average is $157.21.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data 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. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% on a year-over-year basis. During the same quarter last year, the company earned $1.78 earnings per share. As a group, equities research analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The firm also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th were paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 3.70%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 77.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities analysts have recently weighed in on the company. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, January 24th. HSBC decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft dropped their price objective on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. BNP Paribas cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Evercore ISI cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $180.00 to $160.00 in a research report on Tuesday, February 4th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, thirteen have assigned a hold rating and six have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $169.88.

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.