Essex Financial Services Inc. Sells 3,091 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Essex Financial Services Inc. lowered its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 8.9% in the 4th quarter, according to the company in its most recent filing with the SEC. The fund owned 31,714 shares of the company’s stock after selling 3,091 shares during the quarter. Essex Financial Services Inc.’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $4,822,000 as of its most recent SEC filing.

A number of other hedge funds and other institutional investors have also added to or reduced their stakes in PEP. Cross Staff Investments Inc grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 0.9% during the third quarter. Cross Staff Investments Inc now owns 7,080 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,204,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares in the last quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. boosted its stake in PepsiCo by 2.1% in the 3rd quarter. Paulson Wealth Management Inc. now owns 2,986 shares of the company’s stock worth $508,000 after purchasing an additional 60 shares during the period. LCM Capital Management Inc raised its position in shares of PepsiCo by 0.8% during the third quarter. LCM Capital Management Inc now owns 7,573 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,288,000 after buying an additional 62 shares during the last quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC lifted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 1.1% in the third quarter. Demars Financial Group LLC now owns 5,721 shares of the company’s stock worth $973,000 after buying an additional 62 shares in the last quarter. Finally, Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. grew its stake in PepsiCo by 1.6% during the third quarter. Sigma Investment Counselors Inc. now owns 4,310 shares of the company’s stock valued at $733,000 after acquiring an additional 66 shares in the last quarter. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors.

PepsiCo Stock Performance

Shares of PepsiCo stock opened at $144.35 on Tuesday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 52 week low of $141.51 and a 52 week high of $183.41. The company has a market capitalization of $197.98 billion, a PE ratio of 20.77, a price-to-earnings-growth ratio of 2.89 and a beta of 0.54. The stock’s fifty day moving average is $151.42 and its two-hundred day moving average is $164.06. The company has a quick ratio of 0.70, a current ratio of 0.82 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last posted its quarterly earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 EPS for the quarter, topping the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. The company had revenue of $27.78 billion for the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $27.89 billion. PepsiCo had a net margin of 10.43% and a return on equity of 58.87%. The firm’s revenue was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same quarter last year, the firm posted $1.78 EPS. As a group, analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.34 earnings per share for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Shareholders of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a dividend of $1.355 per share. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a yield of 3.75%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is currently 77.99%.

Wall Street Analysts Forecast Growth

Several research firms have commented on PEP. JPMorgan Chase & Co. dropped their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup cut their price target on PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Piper Sandler started coverage on PepsiCo in a report on Tuesday, January 7th. They set an “overweight” rating and a $171.00 price objective on the stock. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft reduced their price target on shares of PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, January 22nd. Finally, Barclays lowered their price objective on shares of PepsiCo from $158.00 to $153.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research report on Thursday, February 6th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have issued a hold rating and eight have assigned a buy rating to the stock. Based on data from MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $171.47.

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.