Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd Increases Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 50.2% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The firm owned 37,472 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 12,524 shares during the period. Y Intercept Hong Kong Ltd’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $5,698,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in the business. State Street Corp increased its position in PepsiCo by 5.1% during the 3rd quarter. State Street Corp now owns 57,268,030 shares of the company’s stock valued at $9,738,429,000 after purchasing an additional 2,775,679 shares during the period. Geode Capital Management LLC increased its position in PepsiCo by 1.8% during the 3rd quarter. Geode Capital Management LLC now owns 30,497,268 shares of the company’s stock valued at $5,170,529,000 after purchasing an additional 543,558 shares during the period. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 5.6% during the third quarter. Charles Schwab Investment Management Inc. now owns 21,360,850 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,632,413,000 after buying an additional 1,125,059 shares during the period. Franklin Resources Inc. increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 21.1% during the third quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 13,021,316 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,293,049,000 after buying an additional 2,264,445 shares during the period. Finally, Wellington Management Group LLP increased its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.7% during the third quarter. Wellington Management Group LLP now owns 12,098,551 shares of the company’s stock valued at $2,057,359,000 after buying an additional 313,468 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Up 3.0 %

PepsiCo stock opened at $153.50 on Monday. The business’s fifty day moving average is $148.66 and its 200 day moving average is $162.11. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.65. The stock has a market capitalization of $210.53 billion, a PE ratio of 22.09, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $141.51 and a one year high of $183.41.

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

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be given 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 payout ratio is 77.99%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

A number of research analysts have weighed in on PEP shares. StockNews.com downgraded PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a report on Thursday, February 6th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Morgan Stanley reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $168.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, February 5th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $155.00 to $150.00 and set an “equal weight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, Citigroup cut their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. One research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have assigned a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average target price 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.