PepsiCo Rises as Overseas Growth Offsets a Lower Profit Outlook

PepsiCo shares rose 2.2% as of early afternoon Thursday, changing hands at $126.45, after the food and beverage maker reported stronger sales abroad and a sharp rise in reported earnings for its latest quarter. The gain came even as the company lowered its full-year profit-growth target. The two signals pointed in opposite directions.

The growth came from abroad

PepsiCo said net revenue rose 5.6% to $25.27 billion for the quarter, with organic revenue up 3.1%. Reported earnings per share jumped 17% to $2.23. Core earnings, which exclude certain one-time items, rose 2% to $2.34.

Most of the momentum came from outside the United States. The international beverage franchise grew net revenue 8% in the quarter, as did the Europe, Middle East and Africa segment. Asia Pacific foods gained 10%. Latin America foods climbed 14%. Chief Executive Ramon Laguarta pointed to “strong net revenue growth, an acceleration in organic revenue growth” as the quarter’s defining feature.

North America is still the drag

At home, the story was softer. The North America foods unit showed sequential improvement in snack volumes, helped by savory brands, though lower net pricing weighed on the result. The beverage unit’s 5% revenue growth leaned heavily on acquisitions completed in 2025 rather than on fresh demand.

Laguarta was direct about the gap. The company is “acting with urgency to sustainably improve our performance in North America,” he said, framing the home market as the quarter’s main unfinished business.

That tension reshaped the full-year outlook. PepsiCo now expects core constant-currency earnings per share to grow 1% to 2% in 2026, down from its earlier guidance for the low end of a 4% to 6% range. On a reported basis, it guided core EPS growth to 2.5% to 3.5%. Revenue held up better: the company lifted its net revenue outlook to about 6% and set organic revenue growth near 3%.

Shares at a one-year low

The muted reaction to a profit-guidance cut has as much to do with where the stock began as with the quarter itself. PepsiCo entered the session at its weakest level in a year. Shares had fallen 11% over the past 90 days and 7.5% over the past month, and Wednesday’s close of $123.73 sat barely above the 52-week low of $123.47. Even after Thursday’s bounce, the stock trades roughly 28% below its 52-week high of $177.50.

Volume reflected the attention. By early afternoon, turnover had already passed the stock’s 20-day average, a sign the report drew heavier trading than a typical session. For a name that had drifted lower for months, a quarter showing accelerating sales growth abroad was enough to pull buyers back in, at least for a day.

Cost cuts and a February report

PepsiCo said it will identify additional structural cost reductions in the coming months to fund growth investments and offset input-cost inflation. The scale and timing of those cuts were not detailed in the release.

The immediate questions are straightforward. Whether the early gain holds into Thursday’s close is the first. Beyond that, the market will watch for signs that North America is stabilizing and that the international strength carries into the holiday quarter. PepsiCo’s next earnings report, covering that period, is due in February.

This is a general-market summary for information only — not investment advice, and not a recommendation regarding any security.