American National Bank & Trust Co. VA Makes New Investment in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

American National Bank & Trust Co. VA purchased a new position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in the 1st quarter, according to its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The institutional investor purchased 30,049 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $5,259,000.

Several other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. LFA Lugano Financial Advisors SA boosted 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 valued at $27,000 after acquiring an additional 70 shares during the last quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC boosted its position in shares of PepsiCo by 100.0% during the 4th quarter. Fortis Group Advisors LLC now owns 194 shares of the company’s stock valued at $33,000 after acquiring an additional 97 shares during the last quarter. Kathleen S. Wright Associates Inc. bought a new position in shares of PepsiCo during the 1st quarter valued at approximately $35,000. Life Planning Partners Inc purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $34,000. Finally, Naples Money Management LLC purchased a new stake in PepsiCo during the 4th quarter valued at $36,000. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PepsiCo stock opened at $162.60 on Friday. The firm has a market cap of $223.54 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a P/E/G ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.52. 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, Inc. has a 12 month low of $155.83 and a 12 month high of $192.38. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $172.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.13.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The firm also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Shareholders of record on Friday, June 7th were issued a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.33%. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This is an increase from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is currently 81.50%.

Insiders Place Their Bets

In other PepsiCo news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the firm’s stock in a transaction dated 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 completion of the sale, the chief executive officer now owns 53,953 shares of the company’s stock, valued at $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the SEC, which is available through this hyperlink. Corporate insiders own 0.14% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several research firms recently weighed in on PEP. Jefferies Financial Group increased their price target on PepsiCo from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. TD Cowen decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday. Barclays decreased their price target on PepsiCo from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, June 12th. Morgan Stanley upgraded PepsiCo from an “equal weight” rating to an “overweight” rating and set a $190.00 price target on the stock in a report on Monday, March 18th. Finally, BNP Paribas began coverage on PepsiCo in a report on Monday, June 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have given a buy rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and a consensus target price of $186.64.

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.