by Ananya Mariam Rajesh
(Reuters) – PepsiCo raised its full-year forecast on Tuesday on the back of price increases offsetting higher costs and strong first-quarter demand for its sodas and snacks.
Big agribusinesses have hiked prices to cope with soaring input and transport costs after COVID-19-related supply chain disruptions worsened with the conflict in Ukraine.
“We don’t expect commodity prices to come down for us, only the inflation rate will be a bit lower over the course of the year,” Chief Financial Officer Hugh Johnston told Reuters.
At the same time, PepsiCo plans to raise its prices in certain regions, while it had said it was planning a price break at the start of the year.
“There are certain markets, very inflationary markets around the world, where we may have to raise prices,” Chief Executive Ramon Laguarta said on an earnings conference call.
On average, prices rose 16% in the first quarter while volumes fell 2%.
On the New York Stock Exchange, PepsiCo shares gained 1.74% in early trading, following similar results released earlier Tuesday by Nestlé and Monday by Coca-Cola.
Pepsico expects organic revenue growth of 8% for 2023, versus a previous forecast of a 6% increase. Annual earnings per share are expected at $7.27, versus $7.20 previously forecast.
(Report Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bangalore, Blandine Hénault for the , edited by Kate Entringer)
Copyright © 2023 Thomson Reuters
I have over 8 years of experience working in the news industry. I have worked as a reporter, editor, and now managing editor at 247 News Agency. I am responsible for the day-to-day operations of the news website and overseeing all of the content that is published. I also write a column for the website, covering mostly market news.
