PepsiCo’s second-quarter results had some fizz, but very little pop.
The maker of brands such as Frito-Lay chips and Tropicana juices said on Wednesday that its net income fell 21 percent but beat Wall Street estimates as it spent more on advertising to cement its brands in consumers’ minds so that it can continue to raise prices.
But so far, its price hikes, which are intended to offset PepsiCo’s higher costs for ingredients, are yielding mixed results. Worldwide, the increases boosted sales of its existing brands that were not part of acquisitions, divestitures and foreign-exchange translations, by 5 percent. But they put pressure on its key North American soda business, which had a 4 percent drop in volume.
(Source: CNBC)