Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd Sells 635 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd lessened its holdings in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 4.0% during the fourth quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission. The institutional investor owned 15,244 shares of the company’s stock after selling 635 shares during the period. Harvest Fund Management Co. Ltd’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $2,577,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

A number of other institutional investors and hedge funds have also recently made changes to their positions in PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 80.5% during the 4th quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 70 shares in the last quarter. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $36,000. Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 4th quarter worth approximately $39,000. Finally, Avion Wealth boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 61.7% during the 4th quarter. Avion Wealth now owns 241 shares of the company’s stock worth $41,000 after acquiring an additional 92 shares in the last quarter. Institutional investors and hedge funds own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

Several analysts recently issued reports on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft increased their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the stock a “hold” rating in a research report on Friday, February 9th. Argus lowered shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 3rd. Morgan Stanley upgraded shares of PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a research report on Monday, March 18th. Citigroup upgraded shares of PepsiCo from a “neutral” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their target price for the company from $180.00 to $195.00 in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Finally, StockNews.com lowered shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Monday, February 12th. Six equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have assigned a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.92.

PepsiCo Trading Down 3.0 %

Shares of PEP stock traded down $5.24 during trading hours on Tuesday, hitting $171.22. 9,134,290 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,799,144. The stock’s 50 day simple moving average is $168.84 and its 200 day simple moving average is $167.63. The stock has a market cap of $235.34 billion, a PE ratio of 26.06, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.73 and a beta of 0.53. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.83 and a 12 month high of $196.88. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.85 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.02.

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

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Monday, April 1st. Investors of record on Friday, March 1st were paid a dividend of $1.265 per share. This represents a $5.06 dividend on an annualized basis and a yield of 2.96%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend was Thursday, February 29th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 77.02%.

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.