Maryland State Retirement & Pension System Purchases 716 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Maryland State Retirement & Pension System raised its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 0.7% in the first quarter, according to the company in its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 107,973 shares of the company’s stock after acquiring an additional 716 shares during the quarter. Maryland State Retirement & Pension System’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $18,266,000 at the end of the most recent reporting period.

Several other institutional investors also recently modified their holdings of PEP. Norges Bank bought a new position in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth $2,686,139,000. International Assets Investment Management LLC lifted its position in PepsiCo by 9,623.6% during the fourth quarter. International Assets Investment Management LLC now owns 3,058,061 shares of the company’s stock worth $519,381,000 after acquiring an additional 3,026,611 shares during the last quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG boosted its holdings in shares of PepsiCo by 121.4% during the fourth quarter. Flossbach Von Storch AG now owns 2,727,622 shares of the company’s stock worth $463,259,000 after acquiring an additional 1,495,586 shares during the period. California Public Employees Retirement System grew its position in shares of PepsiCo by 17.9% in the fourth quarter. California Public Employees Retirement System now owns 9,664,323 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,641,389,000 after purchasing an additional 1,470,064 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Franklin Resources Inc. increased its stake in shares of PepsiCo by 17.7% during the fourth quarter. Franklin Resources Inc. now owns 8,954,951 shares of the company’s stock worth $1,520,909,000 after purchasing an additional 1,345,065 shares during the period. 73.07% of the stock is currently owned by institutional investors and hedge funds.

PepsiCo Price Performance

Shares of NASDAQ PEP traded up $0.50 during midday trading on Friday, reaching $163.10. 355,080 shares of the company were exchanged, compared to its average volume of 5,442,587. PepsiCo, Inc. has a one year low of $155.83 and a one year high of $192.38. The stock has a market cap of $224.23 billion, a P/E ratio of 24.45, a PEG ratio of 2.67 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a quick ratio of 0.68, a current ratio of 0.86 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.96. The stock’s 50-day moving average price is $172.37 and its 200-day moving average price is $170.13.

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

PepsiCo Increases Dividend

The business also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which was paid on Friday, June 28th. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 7th were paid a $1.355 dividend. This is a boost from PepsiCo’s previous quarterly dividend of $1.27. The ex-dividend date was Friday, June 7th. This represents a $5.42 annualized dividend and a dividend yield of 3.32%. PepsiCo’s dividend payout ratio is presently 81.50%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of research analysts have commented on PEP shares. Jefferies Financial Group upped their price objective on PepsiCo from $209.00 to $211.00 and gave the company a “buy” rating in a report on Thursday, May 16th. BNP Paribas assumed coverage on shares of PepsiCo in a research report on Monday, June 24th. They set a “neutral” rating and a $174.00 price target on the stock. Barclays decreased their target price on shares of PepsiCo from $185.00 to $180.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Wednesday, June 12th. Wedbush reiterated an “outperform” rating and issued a $195.00 price target on shares of PepsiCo in a research note on Tuesday, April 23rd. Finally, TD Cowen cut their target price on PepsiCo from $200.00 to $190.00 and set a “buy” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday. Seven equities research analysts have rated the stock with a hold rating and seven have assigned a buy rating to the company’s stock. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, the company has an average rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $186.64.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, CEO Ramkumar Krishnan sold 5,620 shares of the business’s stock in a transaction that occurred on Thursday, May 9th. The shares were 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 in the company, valued at approximately $9,603,634. The sale was disclosed in a filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. 0.14% of the stock is owned by insiders.

About PepsiCo

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.