Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. Grows Stock Holdings in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc. raised its stake in shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 9.7% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent Form 13F filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission. The fund owned 7,887 shares of the company’s stock after buying an additional 696 shares during the quarter. PepsiCo comprises about 0.7% of Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.’s investment portfolio, making the stock its 26th biggest holding. Ables Iannone Moore & Associates Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $1,199,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission.

Other institutional investors have also recently modified their holdings of the company. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates increased its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 59.0% in the 3rd quarter. Global Wealth Strategies & Associates now owns 159 shares of the company’s stock worth $27,000 after purchasing an additional 59 shares in the last quarter. Highline Wealth Partners LLC purchased a new stake in shares of PepsiCo during the 3rd quarter valued at about $28,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the third quarter worth approximately $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its position in PepsiCo by 93.2% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock valued at $34,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the period. Finally, Mattson Financial Services LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo in the 2nd quarter worth approximately $34,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Price Performance

PEP stock traded down $3.38 during trading on Monday, hitting $146.27. 9,448,868 shares of the company’s stock traded hands, compared to its average volume of 5,480,249. The business has a fifty day simple moving average of $159.51 and a 200 day simple moving average of $167.26. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96, a quick ratio of 0.70 and a current ratio of 0.89. The stock has a market capitalization of $200.68 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 21.57, a P/E/G ratio of 2.94 and a beta of 0.54. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $146.10 and a 52 week high of $183.41.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last issued its quarterly earnings data on Tuesday, October 8th. The company reported $2.31 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $2.30 by $0.01. The business had revenue of $23.32 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $23.86 billion. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 57.32% and a net margin of 10.18%. The company’s quarterly revenue was down .6% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the business posted $2.25 earnings per share. As a group, research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.15 EPS for the current fiscal year.

PepsiCo Announces Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, January 6th. Stockholders of record on Friday, December 6th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.71%. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, December 6th. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is presently 79.94%.

Analysts Set New Price Targets

A number of research firms have recently issued reports on PEP. StockNews.com upgraded PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating in a research note on Tuesday, November 5th. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $183.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, October 9th. Bank of America reduced their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $190.00 to $185.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Monday, September 30th. Barclays dropped their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $186.00 to $183.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research note on Thursday, October 10th. Finally, Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft raised PepsiCo from a “hold” rating to a “buy” rating and raised their price objective for the stock from $179.00 to $184.00 in a research note on Thursday, December 12th. One equities research analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, nine have issued a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, PepsiCo presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $184.31.

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.