PepsiCo's profit climbs, boosted by higher prices

NEW YORK (AP) -- PepsiCo Inc. reported a higher quarterly profit that topped Wall Street expectations, as price increases for its drinks and Frito-Lay snacks helped lift revenue.

The company, which makes Gatorade, Doritos, Tropicana and Quaker, said volume rose 2 percent in its Americas food unit, with pricing up 5 percent.

In its Americas beverage unit, however, volume fell 3.5 percent. Sodas in North America fell in the mid-single digits; rival Coca-Cola last week also said its soda volume fell 4 percent in North America, a drop it largely blamed on bad weather.

It noted that its improved productivity also helped lift operating profit.

The company stood by its outlook for year, with core earnings per share expected to grow 7 percent.

The results come a week after investor Nelson Peltz said he wants PepsiCo to separate from its beverage business and buy Oreo cookie maker Mondelez to create a major global snack food company. Peltz says the company's snacks unit is being overshadowed by its underperforming drinks unit. But the proposal faces some major obstacles.

PepsiCo has repeatedly stressed that it plans to move forward as a combined snack and drink company, and that it's not interested in any major deals. The CEO of investment firm BlackRock, which owns a 5 percent stake in PepsiCo, has said that he backs the company and disagrees with the plan.

Besides, PepsiCo is already reviewing some options that could quiet investors.

The company is considering a restructuring for its North American beverage unit, including a possible spinoff. That would mean that the company would still sell its beverages in others parts of the world, such as China and India, where the business is faring far better.

An update on that review isn't expected until early next year.

For the quarter, PepsiCo also reported a 6 percent increase in volume for snacks and a 9 percent jump in drinks for the region encompassing Asia, the Middle East and Africa.

The company said it earned $2.01 billion, or $1.28 per share, for the period ended June 15. That's up from $1.49 billion, or 94 cents per share, in the year-ago period when its results were hit by one-time charges as a result of a deal to expand distribution in China.

Not including one-time items, it earned $1.31 per share, above the $1.19 analysts expected.

Revenue rose 2 percent to $16.81 billion, more than the $16.79 billion forecast by Wall Street.