Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. Trims Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD. reduced its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 7.4% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 2,615 shares of the company’s stock after selling 210 shares during the quarter. Asahi Life Asset Management CO. LTD.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $398,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

A number of other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in the stock. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. increased its position in PepsiCo by 2.1% during the 3rd quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,986 shares of the company’s stock valued at $508,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. Demars Financial Group LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.1% during the 3rd quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 5,721 shares of the company’s stock valued at $973,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 3.5% during the 4th quarter. Tcfg Wealth Management LLC now owns 1,938 shares of the company’s stock valued at $295,000 after buying an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. BIP Wealth LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.9% during the 3rd quarter. BIP Wealth LLC now owns 3,601 shares of the company’s stock valued at $612,000 after buying an additional 67 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Lincoln Capital LLC boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 0.4% during the 4th quarter. Lincoln Capital LLC now owns 16,808 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,556,000 after buying an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

A number of analysts have recently commented on the stock. Piper Sandler assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 target price on the stock. Royal Bank of Canada initiated coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. They set a $172.00 target price on the stock. CICC Research reiterated a “market perform” rating on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Friday, February 7th. Citigroup dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Wells Fargo & Company dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, February 5th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the stock presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $171.47.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP opened at $153.47 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a fifty-two week low of $141.51 and a fifty-two week high of $183.41. The business has a 50-day simple moving average of $148.59 and a two-hundred day simple moving average of $161.53. 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 firm has a market cap of $210.48 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 22.08, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54.

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

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The firm also recently declared 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. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.53%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 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.