PepsiCo looks to premium products for profits
Facing stagnant sales volumes, PepsiCo CEO Indra Nooyi is turning to a well-worn playbook to fuel growth: charge higher prices and cut expenses.
The company is focusing on more premium products such as Poppables, LifeWTR and Quaker Overnight Oats, rather than old standbys like Lay’s and Diet Pepsi. And the strategy is showing up in PepsiCo’s bottom line: It contributed to second-quarter earnings that topped Wall Street estimates, and the food giant boosted its annual forecast.
The premium segment of the snack industry increased about 8 percent last quarter, while PepsiCo’s Frito-Lay business was up about 3.5 percent, he said. That means there’s untapped growth as the business moves upscale.
The seller of Doritos, Sabra hummus and Mountain Dew posted second-quarter earnings of $1.50 a share, excluding some items. That exceeded the $1.40 average of analysts’ estimates.
Revamp ahead for Museum Medical Tower
Museum Medical Tower will undergo a $10 million renovation, according to real estate service firm Transwestern.
The eight-story, 177,476-square-foot tower houses medical offices on the northern edge of the Texas Medical Center.
The project will include a new facade and main entrance, new landscaping and sidewalks, plus new lobby finishes and upgrades to corridors. Building systems will be improved with new chillers, cooling towers, boilers, fire alarms and a new roof.
The tower is owned by HCP.
“HCP’s redevelopment investment and the announcement of HCA’s acquisition of the adjacent Park Plaza Hospital will help position this asset as one of the Texas Medical Center’s most desirable medical office building locations,” said Ashley Cassel, vice president of health care advisory services at Transwestern.
Baker Katz buys building in Pasadena
Houston-based Baker Katz has acquired a 22,000-square-foot retail building at Fairmont Parkway and Beltway 8 in Pasadena. Upgrades such as new signs and landscaping are planned, according to the Houstonbased commercial real estate firm.
“This property sits at a highly sought location in a dense retail trade area near the Ship Channel in Pasadena,” Neal Wade, Baker Katz development partner, said in an announcement.
The building is 70 percent leased. Tenants include Supercuts, Leslie’s Pool Supplies and Mattress Overstock.
S&P warns of ratings cuts for oil majors
Exxon Mobil Corp., Chevron Corp. and other oil majors could see their credit ratings slashed again if they fail to cut costs and reduce their growing debt loads in the next year, according to an S&P Global Ratings report.
The world’s largest drillers failed to take advantage of high prices during the boom years before 2014 to repay debt, according to the report published Tuesday. Instead they embarked on costly investments in new projects and dividends.
Now, a weak recovery in oil prices is making it harder to reduce the debt accumulated in recent years. Exxon Mobil last year lost the platinum credit rating it held since the Great Depression, and all of its largest rivals also faced similar reductions.
Securities Board is seeking new commissioner
The Texas State Securities Board, the agency responsible for enforcing state security laws, is looking for a new commissioner.
John Morgan, who has served as commissioner since 2011, is retiring Aug. 31. He has worked for the agency for 34 years.
The commissioner is the Securities Board’s chief administrative officer. The agency registers investment advisers and brokers who sell securities, investigates complaints from consumers and brings civil lawsuits and criminal cases against violators. About 90 people work at the agency.
The top job requires a law degree and five years of experience with securities-related matters. The job pays nearly $148,000 a year, according to the job posting.