PepsiCo reported better-than-expected quarterly net revenue, as higher sales of snacks and beverages in North America helped reduce the impact of a strong dollar.
The company increased its annualized dividend to $3.01 per share from $2.81 per share and said it would return about $7 billion to shareholders through dividends and buybacks in 2016.
Revenue from PepsiCo‘s (PEP) North America beverages business, which the company started breaking out from the third quarter, rose 2% in the fourth quarter ended Dec. 26, accounting for 31.5% of total revenue.
Revenue from its snacks business, which includes Frito-lay and Doritos chips, also increased 2% in the region.
Frito-Lay North America and North America Beverages were the only two businesses to report revenue growth in the quarter.
The average value of the dollar against a basket of currencies rose 11.7% in the fourth quarter compared with the same quarter a year earlier.
The net income attributable to the company rose to $1.72 billion, or $1.17 per share, in the fourth quarter, from $1.31 billion, or 87 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, the company earned $1.06 per share.
Net revenue fell 7% to $18.59 billion.
Analysts on average had expected earnings of $1.06 per share on net revenue of $18.51 billion, according to Thomson Reuters I/B/E/S.
