Iams Wealth Management LLC Grows Stock Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Iams Wealth Management LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 18.4% during the 1st quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 9,080 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 1,411 shares during the period. Iams Wealth Management LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,362,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Other large investors have also recently added to or reduced their stakes in the company. Tallon Kerry Patrick acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $224,000. Brighton Jones LLC increased its stake in PepsiCo by 12.4% in the fourth quarter. Brighton Jones LLC now owns 59,392 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,031,000 after purchasing an additional 6,574 shares in the last quarter. Union Bancaire Privee UBP SA bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter worth about $9,268,000. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 21.2% during the fourth quarter. U.S. Capital Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 10,988 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,671,000 after buying an additional 1,923 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Optas LLC grew its stake in PepsiCo by 3.7% in the fourth quarter. Optas LLC now owns 4,062 shares of the company’s stock valued at $618,000 after purchasing an additional 145 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Barclays lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $143.00 to $135.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research note on Monday, April 28th. Evercore ISI set a $140.00 price objective on PepsiCo in a research note on Thursday, April 24th. HSBC decreased their price objective on PepsiCo from $186.00 to $170.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. BNP Paribas reduced their target price on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Tuesday, February 4th. Finally, Bank of America cut their price target on PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, April 25th. One investment analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, fifteen have issued a hold rating and four have given a buy rating to the company. According to data from MarketBeat, the company has a consensus rating of “Hold” and a consensus target price of $160.69.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP opened at $131.85 on Wednesday. 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 stock has a market cap of $180.78 billion, a P/E ratio of 18.97, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.47. The company has a 50-day moving average of $137.27 and a two-hundred day moving average of $146.72. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12-month low of $127.75 and a 12-month high of $180.91.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last released its earnings results on Thursday, April 24th. The company reported $1.48 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, missing analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.49 by ($0.01). PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The company had revenue of $17.92 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $17.81 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the firm posted $1.61 earnings per share. PepsiCo’s revenue for the quarter was down 1.8% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts predict that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, June 30th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 6th will be paid a dividend of $1.4225 per share. This represents a $5.69 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 4.32%. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.36. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 6th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is 83.68%.

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.