PepsiCo (PEP -0.67%) is one of the biggest consumer products companies in the world, but Pepsi's assets go well beyond its namesake soda brand.
The company is well diversified across the supermarket aisles, with a portfolio that spans both food and beverage brands. Unlike rival Coca-Cola (KO -0.61%), which only owns beverages, Pepsi owns some healthy brands in addition to sodas and snacks.
Image source: Getty Images.
Like its peers in the beverage industry, the company has grown from humble origins more than 100 years ago by launching new brands and expanding its distribution worldwide, and through a large number of acquisitions that have given it ownership of dozens of global and local brands. It also has valuable licensing arrangements with brands like Starbucks (SBUX -1.6%) and Lipton.
Although the business is considered a consumer staple, many of its products are discretionary purchases.
Companies Pepsi owns
What companies does Pepsi own?
Pepsi's portfolio is primarily made up of sodas and non-carbonated beverages, snacks, and other foods. Over the years, the company has experimented with other types of businesses, such as restaurants, but today it is squarely focused on packaged goods in food and beverages, supplying grocery stores, convenience stores, restaurants, and other retail businesses through a massive distribution network.
Keep reading to see what Pepsi owns today and when it acquired its brands.
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1. Mountain Dew (1964): 100% ownership
Mountain Dew was Pepsi's first major acquisition and is one of the most popular sodas in the country behind co*ke, Diet co*ke, and Pepsi.
Mountain Dew was invented in the 1940s and sold in Virginia and Tennessee. Pepsi expanded its distribution nationwide after the acquisition.
2. Frito-Lay (1965): 100% ownership
The deal that gave the modern-day PepsiCo its shape was its 1965 merger with Frito-Lay, the leading snack maker and owner of brands including Fritos, Lay's, Ruffles, and Doritos.
The deal marked Pepsi's first foray into the food industry and came just four years after The Frito Company had merged with H.W. Lay & Company, forming Frito-Lay. At the time of the merger with Pepsi, Frito-Lay had 46 plants in North America and stakes in European businesses, showing it was a sizable company at the time of the deal.
Pepsi also renamed itself from The Pepsi-Cola Company to PepsiCo after the deal, reflecting its diversification.
The Frito-Lay North America division now contributes roughly 25% of Pepsi's total revenue, or $6 billion in the third quarter of 2023.
3. Mug Root Beer (1986): 100% ownership
Pepsi's current root beer brand is Mug, which it acquired in 1986 when it bought the New Century Beverage Company, replacing its existing root beer brand, OnTap Draft. According to PepsiCo, root beer is the second-largest carbonated drink flavor.
4. Tropicana (1998): 39% ownership
In 1998, PepsiCo made its biggest acquisition at the time, taking over the Tropicana juice business from the Seagram Company for $3.3 billion.
The move heightened Pepsi's competition with Coca-Cola, which acquired Minute Maid in 1960 and still owns it.
At the time, Tropicana was the leader in "not from concentrate" juice.
In 2022, Pepsi sold its majority stake in Tropicana and other juices in its portfolio for $3.3 billion, but Pepsi will retain a 39% stake in a newly formed joint venture with private equity firm PAI Partners.
5. Quaker (2001): 100% ownership
In 2001, Pepsi made a significantly larger acquisition than the Tropicana deal, shelling out $13 billion to acquire the Quaker Oats Company.
The Quaker deal brought Pepsi Quaker-branded products like oats and granola bars, but it also gave it a Gatorade, the leading sports drink brand, which was believed to be its primary reason for making the deal. Quaker also owns packaged foods brands like Rice-a-Roni, Pearl Milling Company (formerly known as Aunt Jemima), and Cap'n Crunch.
The deal came about after Quaker rejected PepsiCo's initial offer. For Pepsi, the move was a response to a shift in consumer tastes away from sodas as the company believed it needed to diversify its portfolio.
Quaker Foods North America, which does not include Gatorade, makes up between 3% and 4% of the company's total revenue.
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6. Sabra Salads (2008): 50% ownership
You might be surprised to learn that PepsiCo has a stake in the popular hummus brand Sabra. Pepsi formed a joint venture with Strauss Group and acquired Sabra in 2008. They expanded the partnership to other products in 2011.
Today, Sabra is believed to bring in more than $1 billion in annual sales.
7. SodaStream (2018): 100% ownership
In 2018, PepsiCo made a somewhat surprising move, acquiring SodaStream for $3.2 billion. SodaStream is best known for its countertop DIY soda machines and extended Pepsi's exposure into healthier drinks since SodaStream is often used for seltzer water.
The deal represents Pepsi's interest in going further into the water and sparkling water industries, and it launched the Bubly brand around the same time.
8. Muscle Milk (2019): 100% ownership
Pepsi acquired the CytoSport sports nutrition business, the parent of Muscle Milk, in 2019 from Hormel (HRL -1.03%). Terms of the deal were not disclosed. Hormel acquired CytoSport in 2014 for $450 million to gain the Muscle Milk brand, which is known for ready-to-drink beverages, protein powders, sports bars, and energy chews.
9. Pipers Crisps (2019): 100% ownership
To complement its snack portfolio anchored by Frito-Lay, PepsiCo acquired Pipers Crisps in 2019, a U.K. brand known for its premium chips. Pepsi paid approximately $30 million for the local brand in the deal.
10. Pioneer Foods (2020): 100% ownership
Pepsi's $1.7 billion purchase of Pioneer Foods might not have gotten much attention in the U.S. because Pioneer is a South African company.
Pioneer Foods is one of South Africa's largest food producers and distributors, known for snack foods and other packaged foods, and exports to 80 countries.
11. Rockstar Energy (2020): 100% ownership
Pepsi was a bit late to the energy drink market, leveraging the Mountain Dew brand for new energy drinks. But in 2020, the company bought its way into the space with the $3.85 billion acquisition of Rockstar Energy Beverages. The news comes years after co*ke formed a strategic partnership with Monster Beverage (MNST -0.33%).
What it could buy in the future
What companies could Pepsi buy in the future?
Pepsi seems likely to continue to pursue its acquisition strategy of buying food and beverage brands. Pepsi is a highly profitable company and spins off billions of dollars of cash each year. Much of its profits are returned to shareholders through dividends and share repurchases, but the remainder is likely to be put to use in acquisitions.
Pepsi previously pursued the Vita Coco Company (COCO -0.69%), so it wouldn't be surprising to see it make another offer for the company, especially as its growth has been impressive, and coconut water is a growth category in the beverage industry.
Similarly, Pepsi has forged a strategic partnership with Celsius Holdings (CELH 0.57%), a fast-growing maker of "healthy" energy drinks, which could pave the way to an acquisition. With a market capitalization of almost $12 billion, Celsius would be pricey but still less than what Pepsi paid for Quaker more than 20 years ago.
On the food and snack front, there's a range of different directions that Pepsi could go in. Rival Hershey (HSY -1.62%) has pivoted towards protein-rich snacks due to slowing growth in candy, and Pepsi could make a similar move, acquiring a jerky brand or another protein-based snack that could complement its ownership of Muscle Milk.
It could also follow Coca-Cola into categories where it doesn't yet compete, like milk. co*ke acquired Fairlife, a protein-fortified milk, and has grown it into a brand that generates $1 billion in revenue every year.
In the 1980s, PepsiCo owned restaurants, including Pizza Hut, Taco Bell, and KFC, which later became Yum! Brands (YUM -1.6%). It even owned Wilson Sporting Goods and North American Van Lines moving company but sold both in the 1980s.
Today, the company seems unlikely to venture outside of packaged food and beverages.
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The bottom line on companies that Pepsi owns
Pepsi has grown to be a diversified packaged foods and beverages giant, thanks to a combination of acquisitions, licensing, and developing its own brands.
Much like Coca-Cola, Pepsi's size gives it a competitive advantage since smaller brands find it difficult to match its distribution network and marketing expertise. Its scale also helps Pepsi increase sales for the brands it acquires since it can ramp up distribution and give it more visibility in stores with a marketing push.
So far, that strategy has worked well for Pepsi. It continues to deliver steady growth and reward investors through a rising share price and increasing dividends. It's likely to continue to execute that strategy through acquisitions and expansions.
FAQ
Companies Pepsi owns: FAQ
What brands does Pepsi own?
Pepsi owns dozens of brands, including both well-known and lesser-known international brands.
Among its soda brands, in addition to its namesake brands, are Mountain Dew, Mug Root Beer, Starry (which replaced Sierra Mist), and Stubborn Soda. Other beverage brands include Gatorade and Aquafina. It also produces ready-to-drink bottled beverages licensed from Starbucks and Lipton and owns Rockstar Energy.
Under the snacks category, Pepsi is best known for Frito-Lay, which includes snack brands like Fritos, Lay's, Doritos, and Cheetos. The company owns Quaker Foods, which it acquired in the same deal that brought it Gatorade.
What does Pepsi own vs. co*ke?
Pepsi and Coca-Cola compete head-to-head in many of the same beverage categories. Cola is the most obvious one, but both companies have iced tea brands, sports drink brands, bottled water, and energy drinks.
Pepsi owns Pure Leaf and Brisk and licenses Lipton for ready-to-drink iced teas. It owns Aquafina in bottled water, Gatorade in sports drinks, and Rockstar in energy drinks.
Although each company has beverages that are unique categories, there is significant overlap in the beverage category portfolio between the two companies.
Is Pepsi now owned by Coca-Cola?
Pepsi is not owned by Coca-Cola.
The two companies have competed for more than 100 years and are the world's biggest beverage companies.
They effectively have a duopoly in the beverages sector, though they do compete with smaller companies like Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP).
Is Starbucks owned by PepsiCo?
Starbucks (NASDAQ:SBUX) is not owned by PepsiCo. However, the two beverage giants have a strategic partnership that began in the 1990s with Pepsi producing Starbucks' ready-to-drink bottled beverages that are available in stores. While the partnership has been successful for both companies, it is unlikely to advance past its current stage to a full-on acquisition, given the size of both companies and the chance of attracting regulatory scrutiny.
Jeremy Bowman has positions in Starbucks. The Motley Fool has positions in and recommends Celsius, Monster Beverage, and Starbucks. The Motley Fool recommends Hershey. The Motley Fool has a disclosure policy.
