MQS Management LLC Takes $690,000 Position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

MQS Management LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) in the second quarter, according to the company in its most recent 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The institutional investor bought 4,183 shares of the company’s stock, valued at approximately $690,000.

A number of other hedge funds also recently modified their holdings of the business. Strategy Asset Managers LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 0.9% during the first quarter. Strategy Asset Managers LLC now owns 6,632 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,161,000 after acquiring an additional 57 shares during the last quarter. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 4.4% during the second quarter. Meixler Investment Management Ltd. now owns 1,383 shares of the company’s stock worth $228,000 after acquiring an additional 58 shares during the last quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.2% during the second quarter. Opes Wealth Management LLC now owns 2,748 shares of the company’s stock worth $453,000 after acquiring an additional 59 shares during the last quarter. Bank of Stockton raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 2.3% during the second quarter. Bank of Stockton now owns 2,716 shares of the company’s stock worth $448,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Oxbow Advisors LLC raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 0.7% during the second quarter. Oxbow Advisors LLC now owns 8,982 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,481,000 after acquiring an additional 60 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 73.07% of the company’s stock.

Analyst Ratings Changes

Several equities research analysts recently commented on the company. StockNews.com raised PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Wednesday, August 28th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on PepsiCo in a research note on Monday, June 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 target price for the company. Royal Bank of Canada decreased their target price on PepsiCo from $180.00 to $177.00 and set a “sector perform” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Morgan Stanley reduced their price objective on PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, July 12th. Finally, Barclays raised their price objective on PepsiCo from $179.00 to $187.00 and gave the company an “overweight” rating in a research note on Friday, July 19th. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and eight have given a buy rating to the stock. According to MarketBeat.com, the stock has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average price target of $185.53.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PEP opened at $175.21 on Thursday. The firm has a market cap of $240.88 billion, a PE ratio of 25.43, a PEG ratio of 3.06 and a beta of 0.53. The stock’s fifty day moving average price is $173.20 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $171.68. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.87, a current ratio of 0.83 and a quick ratio of 0.64. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1 year low of $155.83 and a 1 year high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its earnings results on Thursday, July 11th. The company reported $2.28 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $2.16 by $0.12. The firm had revenue of $22.50 billion for the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $22.59 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.37% and a net margin of 10.34%. The business’s revenue was up .8% on a year-over-year basis. During the same period in the previous year, the company posted $2.09 earnings per share. On average, equities research analysts forecast that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, September 30th. Stockholders of record on Friday, September 6th will be given a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.09%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, September 6th. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio (DPR) is presently 78.66%.

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.