Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI Sells 45,197 Shares of PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP)

Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI reduced its position in PepsiCo, Inc. (NASDAQ:PEP) by 19.6% in the fourth quarter, according to its most recent disclosure with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC). The fund owned 185,283 shares of the company’s stock after selling 45,197 shares during the quarter. Citizens Financial Group Inc. RI’s holdings in PepsiCo were worth $28,174,000 as of its most recent filing with the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC).

A number of other large investors have also bought and sold shares of PEP. Collier Financial purchased a new position in shares of PepsiCo in the fourth quarter valued at $28,000. Creative Capital Management Investments LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the fourth quarter worth about $30,000. Legacy Investment Solutions LLC bought a new stake in PepsiCo during the third quarter worth about $31,000. Rakuten Securities Inc. lifted its stake in PepsiCo by 93.2% during the third quarter. Rakuten Securities Inc. now owns 199 shares of the company’s stock worth $34,000 after purchasing an additional 96 shares during the last quarter. Finally, Bay Harbor Wealth Management LLC bought a new stake in shares of PepsiCo in the 4th quarter valued at about $34,000. 73.07% of the stock is owned by hedge funds and other institutional investors.

PepsiCo Trading Up 1.2 %

Shares of NASDAQ PEP opened at $156.25 on Tuesday. PepsiCo, Inc. has a 1-year low of $141.51 and a 1-year high of $183.41. The business’s 50 day moving average is $148.89 and its two-hundred day moving average is $160.62. The stock has a market capitalization of $214.30 billion, a P/E ratio of 22.48, a PEG ratio of 3.09 and a beta of 0.52. The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 2.05, a current ratio of 0.82 and a quick ratio of 0.65.

PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP) last announced its earnings results on Tuesday, February 4th. The company reported $1.96 earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter, beating the consensus estimate of $1.94 by $0.02. PepsiCo had a return on equity of 58.87% and a net margin of 10.43%. The business had revenue of $27.78 billion during the quarter, compared to analyst estimates of $27.89 billion. During the same quarter in the previous year, the business earned $1.78 earnings per share. The company’s revenue for the quarter was down .2% compared to the same quarter last year. As a group, research analysts expect that PepsiCo, Inc. will post 8.3 EPS for the current year.

PepsiCo Dividend Announcement

The company also recently declared a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Monday, March 31st. Investors of record on Friday, March 7th will be issued a $1.355 dividend. The ex-dividend date is Friday, March 7th. This represents a $5.42 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 3.47%. PepsiCo’s payout ratio is 77.99%.

Wall Street Analyst Weigh In

A number of equities research analysts have recently weighed in on PEP shares. BNP Paribas lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $162.00 to $160.00 and set a “neutral” rating for the company in a research note on Tuesday, February 4th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on PepsiCo from $184.00 to $178.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research note on Wednesday, January 22nd. JPMorgan Chase & Co. lowered their price objective on PepsiCo from $183.00 to $165.00 and set a “neutral” rating on the stock in a research report on Friday, January 24th. Citigroup lowered their price target on PepsiCo from $195.00 to $170.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a report on Wednesday, February 5th. Finally, UBS Group lowered their target price on PepsiCo from $193.00 to $175.00 and set a “buy” rating on the stock in a research report on Thursday, January 16th. One analyst has rated the stock with a sell rating, twelve have given a hold rating and eight have issued a buy rating to the company’s stock. According to MarketBeat, the company currently has a consensus rating of “Hold” and an average price target of $172.35.

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.