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2/3/2026

PepsiCo’s Drink Sales Are Improving, and it’s Planning to Cut Snack Prices

CNBC (02/03/26) Lucas, Amelia

PepsiCo (NASDAQ: PEP) on Tuesday reported quarterly earnings and revenue that topped analysts’ expectations, fueled by improving organic sales across its business. Demand for the company’s snacks has been sluggish as consumers balk at higher prices. This year, Pepsi plans to lower prices on products like chips from its North American food division to “improve competitiveness and the purchase frequency of our brands,” executives said in prepared remarks. Productivity savings will offset the lower prices, they said. Shares of the food and beverage giant fell more than 1% in premarket trading. Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by LSEG: Earnings per share: $2.26 adjusted vs. $2.24 expected; Revenue: $29.34 billion vs. $28.97 billion expected. Pepsi reported fourth-quarter net income attributable to the company of $2.54 billion, or $1.85 per share, up from $1.52 billion, or $1.11 per share, a year earlier. Excluding restructuring and impairment charges and other items, the company earned $2.26 per share. Net sales rose 5.6% to $29.34 billion. Organic revenue, which strips out foreign currency, acquisitions and divestitures, increased 2.1% in the quarter. “PepsiCo’s fourth quarter results reflected a sequential acceleration in reported and organic revenue growth, with improvements in both the North America and International businesses,” CEO Ramon Laguarta said in a statement. However, the company is seeing volume declines, particularly for its North American businesses. The metric excludes pricing and foreign exchange fluctuations to reflect demand more accurately. Global volume for its food fell 2% in the quarter, although global volume for its drinks ticked up 1%. Pepsi’s home market was once again the weak point of the quarter, although it is showing signs of improvement. Inflation-weary shoppers have been buying less of Pepsi’s snacks and drinks in a sign of consumer backlash against higher prices. PepsiCo Beverages North America, which includes Gatorade, Starry, and Poppi, saw volume shrink 4%, though its organic sales rose 2%. PepsiCo’s North American food division, which spans brands from Quaker Oats to Cheetos, reported that volume fell 1%. Although it reported higher volume growth than the North American beverage unit this quarter, Pepsi’s domestic food business has been the laggard of the portfolio for more than a year. To improve demand for its snacks, Pepsi is planning to cut prices on some packages of select brands, including Lay’s, Tostito’s, Doritos, and Cheetos, executives said in prepared remarks. In addition to price cuts, key brands, like Lay’s, Tostitos, Gatorade, and Quaker have been undergoing makeovers that include simpler ingredients and new packaging to help bring back customers. Pepsi is also working on expanding its portfolio to include more functional drinks, whole grains, protein and fiber. Pepsi also reiterated the outlook for 2026 that the company provided in December. The company is projecting that organic revenue will rise between 2% to 4% and core constant currency earnings per share will increase in a range of 4% to 6%. In December, Pepsi struck a deal with investor Elliott Investment Management, which had revealed a roughly $4 billion stake in the company two months earlier. As part of the agreement, Pepsi said it would slash its U.S. product lineup by 20%, cut costs across its food and beverage operations and lower snack prices. Elliott did not receive any seats on Pepsi’s board. As Pepsi implements that plan this year, the company is projecting that its North American business will improve, while its international divisions remain “resilient,” according to Laguarta.

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2/3/2026

Fuji Media Unveils Big Share Buyback to Push Out Activist

Bloomberg (02/03/26) Sano, Hideyuki

Fuji Media Holdings Inc. (4676) has unveiled a massive share buyback plan to repel investor Yoshiaki Murakami, effectively ending one of Japan’s most high-profile corporate battles in recent years. Under the plan, Fuji Media will repurchase up to ¥235 billion ($1.5 billion) of its own shares. The Murakami-led entities have indicated their intention to sell their entire stake in the broadcaster, Fuji said. The agreement marks the end of a months-long standoff with Murakami, who had been aggressively campaigning for higher shareholder returns and the divestment of Fuji’s profitable real estate unit. Since first disclosing their position in April last year, Murakami’s entities rapidly built a 17.33% stake. “It looks like they reached a settlement,” said Daisuke Uchiyama, senior strategist at Okasan Securities (8609.T). “This was likely the only realistic exit strategy for the activists, especially considering the size of their position.” Fuji Media said it could repurchase up to 71 million shares—roughly 34.4% of its outstanding stock excluding treasury shares. The company did not disclose the specific purchase price per share. The buyback represents approximately 25% of the company’s market capitalization. Fuji said it will use its own cash and bank loans to finance the share buyback, adding it has plenty of cash and can expect steady cash flow to pay back the debt. Fuji, once Japan’s most competitive broadcaster, has become a prime option for activists including Dalton Investments last year after the management’s mishandling of sexual harassment allegations lead to a sponsor boycott.

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2/3/2026

Disney Names Josh D’Amaro as Next C.E.O.

New York Times (02/03/26) Barnes, Brooks

Josh D’Amaro, a 28-year Disney (DIS) veteran with vast theme park experience but little expertise in movies and television, will succeed Robert A. Iger as Disney’s chief executive, ending a nearly three-year search, the company said on Tuesday. Disney’s board voted unanimously to give Mr. D’Amaro the job. He will assume power on March 18, when Disney is scheduled to hold its annual shareholder meeting. He will also join the company’s board. After Mr. D’Amaro, 54, takes control of the company, Mr. Iger, 74, will serve as a senior adviser and board member until his retirement on Dec. 31, when his contract expires. At that point, he will leave Disney entirely, the company said. Mr. D’Amaro most recently served as chairman of Disney Experiences, a division with $36 billion in annual revenue that includes theme parks, a fast-growing cruise line and consumer products, including video games. Mr. D'Amaro's unit made up roughly 60% of Disney's profit last year: Disney, in some ways, has become more of a travel company than a media one. James P. Gorman, Disney’s chairman, said in a statement that Mr. D’Amaro possessed “that rare combination of inspiring leadership and innovation, a keen eye for strategic growth opportunities and a deep passion for the Disney brand and its people — all of which make him the right person to take the helm.” Disney also promoted Dana Walden to president and chief creative officer, effective March 18. Ms. Walden, 61, has been Disney’s top television executive (excluding ESPN) with joint oversight of streaming. Her remit, Disney said, will now include ensuring that “storytelling and creative expression across every audience touchpoint consistently reflect the brand.” Ms. Walden will be the first companywide chief creative officer in Disney’s 103-year history. Mr. Iger noted in a statement that Ms. Walden “commands tremendous respect from the creative community.” She joined Disney in 2019 after the company’s $71.3 billion acquisition of 21st Century Fox assets. She started her career as a Fox publicist, eventually rising to run the Fox broadcast network and associated television studio. Succession has been hanging over Disney since 2022, when Mr. Iger — having bungled the process in 2020 — came out of retirement to retake the company’s reins. This time around, an outsider, Mr. Gorman, a veteran Wall Street banker, managed the succession process. He was recruited to serve on the Disney board in 2024 as part of Mr. Iger’s response to attacks from investors, one of whom, Nelson Peltz, harshly criticized the company for slipshod succession planning. Although the company considered outside candidates, the search came down to four internal leaders: Ms. Walden; Alan Bergman, Disney’s movie chief; Jimmy Pitaro, whose fief is ESPN; and Mr. D’Amaro. The question of whether any of them would ascend to the top job had captivated Hollywood, which long viewed Ms. Walden as the most viable candidate. Disney has a history of bumpy transfers of power. Mr. Iger’s predecessor when he was first elevated to run the company, Michael D. Eisner, tried to cling to his job, and in the end turned over a struggling company. During his earlier, 15-year stint as Disney’s chief executive, Mr. Iger delayed his retirement four times and seemed reluctant to leave when he did. The last time Mr. Iger stepped back, he quickly soured on his successor, Bob Chapek, who, like Mr. D’Amaro, ascended from the company’s theme park division. The epic power struggle that followed between the two destabilized the company and ended with Mr. Iger’s return to Disney. A Disney chief executive is an instant celebrity. He (they’ve all been men) presides over what are perceived as some of the most powerful and glamorous businesses in the world: the Marvel, Disney, Pixar, Lucasfilm and 20th Century movie studios; the ABC broadcast network and news division; cable channels like ESPN, FX and National Geographic. Its 14 theme parks on three continents attracted an estimated 145 million visitors in 2024. Disney also has a fast-growing cruise line, with eight ships in the water and five more on the way. Even by chief executive standards, the pay is enormous. Mr. Iger’s compensation last year totaled $45.8 million. Mr. D’Amaro was given a compensation target of roughly $38 million for his first year in the role, including a one-time bonus of about $9.7 million, according to a securities filing on Tuesday. But the challenges facing Mr. D’Amaro are vast. He will take over Disney at a time of colossal industry upheaval, from the collapse of traditional TV to the rise of generative artificial intelligence. If the most recent era at Disney was about building up an arsenal of intellectual property — Mr. Iger orchestrated Disney’s purchases of Marvel, Pixar, Lucasfilm and most of 21st Century Fox — the next period will largely be about technology. Disney will need to harness A.I. to continue building its streaming empire (Disney+, Hulu and an ESPN service) and compete with Netflix (NFLX), YouTube and TikTok. To increase its hold on teenagers and 20-somethings, Disney will also need to become a bigger player in games. Disney already licenses its characters for video games, but the company — at Mr. D’Amaro’s prodding — is investing billions of dollars in a Fortnite-connected Disney universe.

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2/3/2026

Billionaire Investor Peltz Open to More Buyouts

Reuters (02/03/26) French, David

Nelson Peltz is looking to go back to his roots with Trian Fund Management and could buy more companies outright in the future, the billionaire investor said on Tuesday. One of the best-known activist investors, Peltz helped found Trian in 2005 and has since campaigned to oust management and board members and change strategy at companies including Walt Disney (DIS.N), Kraft Heinz (KHC.O), and Procter & Gamble (PG.N). Trian and investment firm General Catalyst agreed in December to buy Janus Henderson (JHG.N) for $7.4 billion, the culmination of a more than five-year investment by Trian that started out as activism. Peltz told the WSJ Invest Live event in West Palm Beach, Florida, that the Janus deal harkened back to successful buyout investments earlier in his career, and market conditions were conducive for further dealmaking. "We used to buy all of a company, and I liked doing that as I don't have to do a dance for a boardroom," Peltz said, noting it allowed changes at a company to be implemented quicker than taking a stake and negotiating with an existing board. "Prices have become more reasonable, deals are becoming more productive. So we can do things the way we like to do them." The billionaire hedge fund manager said that while he liked a lot of things which U.S. President Donald Trump has done during his second term, he disagreed with his use of tariff policy and how it has been focused on revenue generation, instead of promoting free trade. "I think he is using tariffs the wrong way," he said. "I was hoping that the threat of tariffs was going to lower tariffs, so we had closer to free trade between us and our trading partners, and not being used as a source of revenue." He added that while there was still time for the course to be changed, tariff policy should help U.S. companies be more competitive, by bringing down the cost of selling U.S. cars in Germany for example.

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2/3/2026

Investors Use New Tactics to Pressure BP on Climate Change

Financial Times (02/03/26) Mooney, Attracta; Moore, Malcolm

BP (NYSE: BP) is being challenged over its surge in upstream oil and gas spending by a group of shareholder activists and pension funds as they switch tactics on climate change to question the sector’s business strategy. Nest, the UK’s largest workplace pension scheme by membership, Swiss federal pension fund Publica, and four British local authority funds are part of the move, taken in response to companies such as BP ditching their renewable energy businesses and rolling back climate pledges. The investor group will target “undisciplined capital allocation” at BP and have co-filed a resolution with the Australasian Centre for Corporate Responsibility (ACCR) at BP’s annual meeting in April. The resolution will mean incoming BP chief executive Meg O’Neill again faces the ACCR, which repeatedly challenged her at Woodside Petroleum. The shareholder proposal calls for BP to set out how the company takes “a disciplined approach to capital expenditure in order to generate an acceptable return on capital” for new oil and gas projects. In a presentation to shareholders last February, BP said it was making a “fundamental reset” to its strategy which would see it pivot away from renewable energy and focus on oil and gas production. It said it would increase its spending on oil and gas by $1.5 billion to $10 billion a year and axe spending on clean energy from $7 billion to $1.5 billion-$2 billion a year. “We are reallocating capital to the highest-return opportunities,” said Murray Auchincloss, the former BP chief executive, who pledged to increase BP’s return on average capital employed from 12% in 2024 to more than 16% by 2027. Gordon Birrell, BP’s head of production, said the next generation of BP’s oil and gas projects would have an internal rate of return of more than 20%. ACCR’s shareholder resolution is the second filed at BP this year after Dutch group Follow This and more than 20 institutional investors called on the oil and gas company to disclose its strategies for maintaining profitability if the demand for fossil fuels declines. The two resolutions indicate that shareholder groups that previously pushed for oil and gas companies to set out net zero emissions targets are now pivoting towards a focus on longer-term profitability. Diandra Soobiah, director of responsible investment at Nest, said BP had “underperformed for the past decade, including the period they were prioritizing oil and gas production." “Now they have dropped their renewables strategy, investors need to be reassured that any expansion to their upstream oil and gas portfolio will be governed by robust capital discipline and generate sustainable returns,” she said. Meg O'Neill speaks at a podium with two microphones during Woodside Energy Group's (NYSE: WDS) annual general meeting. The ACCR said its research had found that the $22 billion BP spent on conventional oil and gas projects over the past six years had delivered limited value to shareholders. “Investors would be concerned if the new CEO, Meg O’Neill, doesn’t take the opportunity to genuinely reflect on the numbers and poor returns from oil and gas growth projects and whether increasing upstream capex will create more shareholder value,” said Nick Mazan at ACCR. The resolution asks the company to disclose by April 2027 an assessment of the relative cost competitiveness of projects, cost overruns and delays, and how continued capital expenditure on exploration would create value for shareholders. The investors behind the resolution account for just 0.42% of the capital and it marks the first time that ACCR has filed a resolution at BP. However, ACCR gained the support of a fifth of voting shareholders for a resolution questioning Shell’s gas expansion strategy at its annual meeting last year, as well as from almost 30% of voting shareholders at Glencore (GLNCY) in 2023. In 2020, ACCR won the backing of more than half of voting shareholders for a landmark resolution calling for ambitious climate targets at Woodside, where O’Neill was a senior executive from 2018 before becoming chief executive in 2021. It also filed resolutions there again in 2022.

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2/2/2026

Donerail Offers to Buy Superyacht Service Company MarineMax

Reuters (02/02/26) Herbst-Bayliss, Svea

Donerail Group has offered to buy MarineMax (NYSE: HZO) for $35 per share in an all-cash deal that would value the superyacht service company at just over $1 billion, three sources familiar with the matter told Reuters. The offer comes several months after the investment group pressed MarineMax to make sweeping changes, ranging from selling itself to replacing its chief executive as the marinas business becomes a hot investment area. Headquartered in Clearwater, Florida, MarineMax caters to a wealthy clientele through its 65 marinas and storage locations and 70 dealerships, with megayachts listed for sale on its website in the millions of dollars. MarineMax hired Wells Fargo bankers earlier this year after receiving the offer while Donerail and its investment partners retained Jefferies to pursue the takeover, said the people, who asked not to be identified in order to discuss the private talks. Donerail, co-founded by Will Wyatt and Wes Calvert in 2018, owns nearly 5% of MarineMax and met with management several times in recent months to lay out concerns about how capital is allocated. It also criticized the company for what it said was a flawed strategy as well as its oversight of financial matters, Reuters previously reported. MarineMax was trading around $26.09 earlier Monday, valuing the company at roughly $575 million. While MarineMax has made some changes and replaced several directors, including removing the chief financial officer from the board last year, the moves failed to satisfy Donerail. Donerail isn't the only party expressing interest in MarineMax, the sources said, noting that others have signaled possibly wanting to buy a portion of the company - namely its marina business. Industry analysts previously said there may be considerable interest for all of MarineMax or pieces of it, especially now that interest rates have dropped and consumer demand for boats appears to be rising. MarineMax's stock price has climbed 8% this year, getting a boost when the company reported last month that same-store sales rose 10% in its fiscal 2026 first quarter. But the stock price is down 12% in the last 12 months and has lagged even more over the last five years, dropping 37% while the broader S&P 500 index has risen 82%. Donerail's offer is coming to light just before the Miami International Boat Show, the world's largest, kicks off next week and also before MarineMax's annual meeting, currently scheduled for March 3. At the meeting, investors will decide who sits on the company's board, with three of the company's seven board members, including CEO Brett McGill, standing for election. McGill, son of MarineMax founder Bill McGill, took the reins in 2018 and has sought to pivot the company from a leading retailer to an integrated marine business by buying Island Global Yachting in 2022. The acquisition of IGY, which owns luxury marinas in the U.S., Europe, the Caribbean and Latin America, left the company with more debt, and industry analysts said the integration has not been smooth. In 2024, for instance, the Mexican Navy took control of the Marina Cabo San Lucas from IGY after the company failed to effectively renew its lease with the government. Ultra-wealthy yacht owners have only a few locations to dock their vessels, which provides a steady stream of income for these types of marina owners. Alternative asset manager Blackstone bought marina and superyacht-servicing business Safe Harbor last year for $5.7 billion.

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2/2/2026

Japan's Top Business Lobby Invites Elliott for Governance Talks

Reuters (02/02/26) Yamazaki, Makiko

Japan's biggest business lobby, Keidanren, has invited investor Elliott Investment Management to a private meeting on March 5 to discuss issues of corporate governance, it told member firms in a notice seen by Reuters. Elliott's recent activity in Japan has seen it take stakes in several large companies such as Toyota Industries (6201.T), Tokyo Gas (9531.T), Kansai Electric Power (9503.T), Sumitomo Realty & Development (8830.T), all members of the lobby group. The rare meeting underscores the growing influence of shareholder activism in Japan, as Keidanren, a pillar of the corporate establishment, seeks direct dialogue with one of the world's most powerful hedge funds. An Elliott portfolio manager overseeing Japanese equity investments is expected to outline the fund's investment strategy and approach to engagement with companies, followed by "a frank exchange of views," it added. "We believe it is important to deepen our understanding of activists' investment policies and areas of focus, while also seeking to foster their understanding of how Japanese companies approach corporate governance," Keidanren said in its notice. Keidanren confirmed the planned meeting in response to Reuters' request for comment, but declined to give details. Elliott could not be reached immediately for comment. Investors' interest in Japan has grown as recent governance reforms, regulatory pressure for better capital efficiency and stock market undervaluation have boosted its appeal. There were 75 activist firms operating in Japan in 2025, a figure that has climbed steadily from 10 in 2015, says IR Japan. Activist firms' investment in Japanese equities has surged to 13 trillion yen ($84 billion) by 2025, as they increasingly target large, blue-chip firms, many among Keidanren's roughly 1,600 members, to go beyond small or mid-size companies. At the same time, concern is growing within Keidanren that some shareholders' emphasis on short-term profits could discourage longer-term growth investment and prompt uniform demands that do not fully reflect specific company's conditions. In policy proposals to the government in December, Keidanren said companies should ensure appropriate value distribution to a broad range of stakeholders, including employees, business partners and local communities, rather than just shareholders. The government is planning to revise the corporate governance code this year.

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2/2/2026

Devon Agrees to Buy Oil Rival Coterra for US$21.4 Billion in Stock

Bloomberg (02/02/26) Wethe, David; Carnevali, David; Davis, Michelle F.

Devon Energy Corp. (NYSE: DVN) agreed to acquire rival shale driller Coterra Energy Inc (NYSE: CTRA) for about $21.4 billion in stock, one of the largest oil and natural gas deals in years. The deal calls for Coterra stockholders to receive 0.7 Devon shares for each share they own, according to a statement Monday. The company will keep the Devon name, and Devon Chief Executive Officer Clay Gaspar will remain as CEO after the deal closes. Kimmeridge Energy Management Co., an oil and gas investor with stakes in both companies, has voiced support for a potential tie-up that would allow the combined company to focus on their Delaware Basin assets. The deal, expected to close in the second quarter and generate about $1 billion in pre-tax savings, illustrates how shale companies are pushing to consolidate as many of the best U.S. drilling sites have been tapped. The combination would strengthen their positions in the Permian Basin of West Texas and New Mexico, the country’s largest and most productive oil field, giving them more scale to better compete with rivals such as Exxon Mobil Corp. (NYSE: XOM) and Diamondback Energy Inc. (NASDAQ: FANG). “We’ve now built a diverse asset base of high-quality, long duration inventory to drive resilient value creation and returns for shareholders through cycles,” Gaspar said on Monday. Devon shareholders will own 54% of the combined company, and Coterra shareholders will own 46%. Devon has rights to about 400,000 net acres in a fast-growing swath of the Permian known as the Delaware Basin, where Coterra also has a 346,000-acre position. Coterra also has a large position in the Marcellus Shale. The combined company would be one of the biggest oil and natural gas producers in U.S. shale with pro-forma third quarter output of more than 1.6 million barrels per day of oil equivalent. The enterprise value of the deal is around $58 billion. Coterra was formed through the 2021 merger of Cimarex Energy Co. and Cabot Oil & Gas Corp. At the time, analysts were baffled by the logic of oil-heavy Cimarex pairing with Cabot, which focused on natural gas. After the close, Devon will move its headquarters to Houston while keeping a presence in Oklahoma City where it’s currently based.

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2/2/2026

Toyota Has ‘No Intention’ of Raising $34 Billion Take-private Offer After Elliott Challenge

Financial Times (02/02/26) Dempsey, Harry; Keohane, David

Toyota (NYSE: TM) has said it has “no intention” of raising its ¥5.4 trillion ($34 billion) offer to take its largest subsidiary private, setting up a showdown with Elliott Management, which has staunchly objected to the carmaker’s price. Toyota Asset Preparatory, an entity formed to take control of car parts supplier Toyota Industries (6201.T), said on Monday that its offer of ¥18,800 a share was its “best possible price." “The tender offer price represents the best possible price reflecting the intrinsic value of the target company,” Toyota Asset said in a stock exchange filing, adding that it had “no intention to change the tender offer price." The bid by Toyota Asset — which consists of Toyota Motor, its chair Akio Toyoda, and real estate group Toyota Fudosan — is one of the world’s largest take-private deals and could reshape Japan’s biggest business empire and set the tone for corporate governance across Tokyo’s stock exchange. The proposal has been praised for seeking to unwind cross-shareholdings, which can lead to abuses of minority shareholder rights. But it has also provoked intense criticism from investors and corporate governance experts for its low offer and opaque valuation method. Toyota raised its offer once after investors and shareholders accused it of underpaying. Elliott has been on the offensive to block the deal, arguing that Toyota’s offer undervalues the business. It has taken a more than 6% stake in Toyota Industries and has been lobbying shareholders to withhold tendering their shares. The fund believes Toyota Industries, which is also the world’s largest forklift maker, should be valued at more than ¥25,000 a share. It published a note last week arguing the company had “a clear path to...more than ¥40,000 per share by 2028.” Toyota Industries currently trades at close to ¥19,800 a share, above the offer price. Shareholders have until February 12 to tender their shares, but the deadline can be extended. Elliott still faces an uphill battle to block the tender. Toyota can force a full acquisition by controlling two-thirds of all shares. It currently holds close to 50%, taking into account cross-shareholdings and companies close to Toyota, according to people familiar with the transaction. They added that Elliott was prepared to continue increasing its stake in the days before the tender closes and that it could launch an offer for enough shares to try to block the deal.

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