Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC Sells 23,052 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC lowered its position in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 30.5% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 52,415 shares of the company’s stock after selling 23,052 shares during the period. Knights of Columbus Asset Advisors LLC’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $8,902,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Several other hedge funds have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 1.1% during the fourth quarter. Proquility Private Wealth Partners LLC now owns 5,260 shares of the company’s stock valued at $950,000 after purchasing an additional 57 shares in the last quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC boosted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 2.8% in the 4th quarter. Amplius Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 2,241 shares of the company’s stock worth $381,000 after buying an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC grew its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 2.7% in the third quarter. Darwin Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,345 shares of the company’s stock valued at $397,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares in the last quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.6% during the fourth quarter. Sugarloaf Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,420 shares of the company’s stock valued at $411,000 after acquiring an additional 61 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Cassia Capital Partners LLC boosted its position in PepsiCo by 1.5% in the third quarter. Cassia Capital Partners LLC now owns 4,143 shares of the company’s stock worth $702,000 after purchasing an additional 63 shares during the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEP traded up $0.75 during mid-day trading on Friday, hitting $173.02. The company had a trading volume of 2,691,678 shares, compared to its average volume of 5,681,371. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $168.55 and its 200-day moving average price is $167.42. The company has a market capitalization of $237.82 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 26.24, a P/E/G ratio of 2.66 and a beta of 0.53. The company has a current ratio of 0.85, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $155.83 and a 1 year high of $196.88.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its quarterly earnings results on Friday, February 9th. The company reported $1.78 earnings per share for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.72 by $0.06. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.03% and a net margin of 9.92%. The firm had revenue of $27.84 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $28.40 billion. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $1.67 earnings per share. The company’s revenue was down .6% on a year-over-year basis. On average, sell-side analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Stockholders of record on Friday, March 1st were given a dividend of $1.265 per share. The ex-dividend date was Thursday, February 29th. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 2.92%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 77.02%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of equities research analysts have recently commented on the company. Citigroup upgraded PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and lifted their target price for the stock from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research note on Monday, February 12th. StockNews.com cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Monday, February 12th. Barclays raised their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, April 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price objective on the stock in a research note on Monday, March 18th. Finally, Argus lowered PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to data from MarketBeat, the stock currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.92.

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.