Activist investor takes €3.4bn stake in PepsiCo to boost share price

PepsiCo, a global food and beverage leader, completed a €127m investment at its facility in Little Island, Cork, in 2023. Picture: PepsiCo

Activist investor Elliott Management disclosed a $4bn (€3.4bn) stake in PepsiCo, launching a campaign to restore growth and boost the beverage maker's share price.

The stake in PepsiCo, one of Elliott's biggest holdings, comes as the company tackles choppy demand for its snacks business, and pursues a shift to healthier drinks and sodas to address changing consumer preferences.

The company's stock jumped 6% in early trading, after losing about a quarter of its value since hitting a record high in May 2023.

Elliott singled out Pepsico's North America beverages unit as an under-performer, saying growth and margins were lagging peers due to strategic missteps, share losses in soda, and the introduction of new brands and products that has "strained focus and execution".

PepsiCo should evaluate a potential re-franchising of its bottling network along the lines of rival Coca-Cola's, Elliott said.

PepsiCo did not immediately respond to a Reuters request for comment.

Little Island facility

The food and beverage giant has a significant presence in Ireland. Some 700 people are employed at PepsiCo's Little Island facility in Cork, which has been in operation since 1974 with hundreds more based in Carrigaline.

In 2023, the company completed its €127m project which saw additional manufacturing capacity at the plant and further investment in its research and development (R&D) campus.

Elliott's equity activism strategy had also grabbed headlines last year, when the investment firm revealed a $5bn (€4.3bn) holding in Honeywell and orchestrated a break-up of the heavy machinery maker.

"With the right mindset and an appropriately ambitious turnaround plan, PepsiCo today represents a rare chance to revitalise a leading global enterprise and unlock significant shareholder value," Elliott wrote in its letter.

About a decade ago, activist investor Nelson Peltz led an unsuccessful campaign to get Pepsico to split its struggling beverages unit from its stronger snacks business, which is home to brands such as Lay's and Doritos.

The company should "defend its core franchises in carbonated soft drinks with incremental marketing and innovation, while selectively expanding in growing categories," Elliott said.

The packaged foods industry has been navigating troubled waters, with companies looking to reshape their portfolios through splits and mergers as high commodity costs and shifting consumer demand drag sales.

The Wall Street Journal first reported the news on Tuesday.

• Reuters