Hodges Capital Management Inc. Sells 10,826 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Hodges Capital Management Inc. cut its stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 31.0% during the first quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The firm owned 24,138 shares of the company’s stock after selling 10,826 shares during the quarter. Hodges Capital Management Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,225,000 at the end of the most recent quarter.

Several other large investors have also recently made changes to their positions in PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA raised its stake in PepsiCo by 80.5% in the fourth quarter. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA now owns 157 shares of the company’s stock valued at $27,000 after buying an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC lifted its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 100.0% during the fourth quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock worth $33,000 after buying an additional 97 shares during the period. Life Planning Partners Inc acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at about $36,000. Finally, Criterion Capital Advisors LLC acquired a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at about $39,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock opened at $164.93 on Friday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $155.83 and a 1 year high of $192.38. The firm has a market capitalization of $226.74 billion, a PE ratio of 24.80, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.71 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a current ratio of 0.86 and a quick ratio of 0.68. The business has a 50 day simple moving average of $173.37 and a 200-day simple moving average of $170.31.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.29%. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.50%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

PEP has been the topic of a number of recent research reports. Jefferies Financial Group upped their target price on PepsiCo from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a research report on Thursday, May 16th. Barclays lowered their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley raised PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price objective for the company in a report on Monday, March 18th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. boosted their price target on PepsiCo from $181.00 to $184.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a report on Wednesday. Finally, Argus cut shares of PepsiCo from a “buy” rating to a “hold” rating in a research note on Wednesday, April 3rd. Seven analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and six have issued a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, PepsiCo currently has an average rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $186.38.

Insider Activity

In other news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the company’s stock in a transaction on Thursday, May 9th. The stock was sold at an average price of $178.00, for a total value of $1,000,360.00. Following the transaction, the chief executive officer now owns 53,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is accessible through the SEC website. Corporate insiders own 0.15% of the company’s stock.

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.