Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR Buys 3,545 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR lifted its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 6.2% in the 4th quarter, Holdings Channel.com reports. The firm owned 60,489 shares of the company’s stock after purchasing an additional 3,545 shares during the period. PepsiCo makes up about 3.1% of Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 8th biggest position. Pioneer Trust Bank N A OR’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $10,273,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds also recently added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA increased its holdings in PepsiCo by 80.5% in the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new position in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth lifted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 61.7% during the fourth quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after purchasing an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

PepsiCo Trading Up 0.1 %

Shares of NASDAQ:PEP traded up $0.23 on Thursday, reaching $177.64. 1,423,433 shares of the company traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,620,278. The stock has a market capitalization of $244.22 billion, a P/E ratio of 26.72, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.87 and a beta of 0.52. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $155.83 and a 52 week high of $196.88. The business’s 50-day simple moving average is $170.49 and its 200 day simple moving average is $168.70. The company has a current ratio of 0.86, a quick ratio of 0.68 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Tuesday, April 23rd. The company reported $1.61 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.52 by $0.09. The business had revenue of $18.25 billion during the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $18.08 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.00% and a return on equity of 57.37%. The business’s revenue for the quarter was up 2.3% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the previous year, the company earned $1.50 earnings per share. As a group, equities analysts anticipate that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.16 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, June 28th. Investors of record on Friday, June 7th will be paid a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 7th. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.05%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 81.50%.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. Royal Bank of Canada reissued a “sector perform” rating and set a $180.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft upped their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “hold” rating in a report on Friday, February 9th. Wedbush reaffirmed an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 target price on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Tuesday, April 23rd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lifted their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $178.00 to $181.00 and gave the stock a “neutral” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 24th. Finally, Jefferies Financial Group upped their price target on PepsiCo from $199.00 to $209.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Friday, April 5th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the company has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $187.42.

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.