PepsiCo Inc (PEP) has had a challenging year. Between January 1 and December 23, 2016, the stock has appreciated by just 4.91%.  But compared to the Coca-Cola Company (KO), PepsiCo Inc has done really well. The Coca-Cola Company has generated losses of -3.32% since January 1, and the trends don’t look encouraging.

Fortunately for PepsiCo, the company has branched out into many different industries, including health food snacks, water and soft drinks. This is helping to shore up the company’s bottom line and reverse the negative trends that have hit the sector. PepsiCo and The Coca-Cola  company are fiercely competitive in North America, but Coca-Cola dominates on a global scale. Both companies are determined to cash in on the wave of healthy eating trends sweeping Europe, the US, Canada, Australia and beyond. According to Zacks Investment Research, PepsiCo Inc and the Coca-Cola company are regarded as hold stocks. This is a fair assessment given the sweeping changes in consumer dietary and lifestyle preferences.

Overall performance of PepsiCo compared to the Coca-Cola Company

At current prices, The Coca-Cola Company has a market capitalization of $179.12 billion. The stock’s price/earnings ratio is a respectable 25.18 and it has $1.65 earnings per share. The stock also offers a dividend of $1.40 and a yield of 3.37%. The 52-week high of the stock is $47.13 per share and the low is $39.88 per share.

The 1-year target estimate price is approximately $4 higher than the prevailing price of $41.52 per share. While Zacks regards The Coca-Cola Company stock as a hold, Thomson Reuters analysts have issued a 2.4 consensus rating on the stock. 1.0 represents a strong buy in 5.0 represents a sell. On December 16, 2016, Morgan Stanley downgraded The Coca-Cola Company from an overweight rating to an equal rate rating. On 13 December 2016, Deutsche Bank downgraded The Coca-Cola Company to a hold rating.

PepsiCo Inc is priced significantly higher than Coca-Cola at $104.82 per share. The company has a market capitalization of $150.42 billion with a price/earnings ratio of 31.12. This figure is slightly elevated. The earnings per share is listed as $3.37 and the 1-year target estimate price is $116.85 per share, indicating significant bullishness for the stock. The 52-week trading range of the stock is $110.94 on the high side and $93.25 on the low side. Thomson Reuters analysts have issued a 2.1 rating to the stock. 1.0 represents a strong buy and 5.0 represents a sell. On 12 December 2016, Societe Generale upgraded PepsiCo Inc from a hold to a buy.

Based on the comparative statistics, PepsiCo Inc  is clearly the better stock to purchase at this time. Day traders and investors will be somewhat alarmed by the negative performance of the Coca-Cola Company for 2016, but it retains a dominant market share on a global scale  the company has deep pockets to diversify into many different product lines.

Technical Indicators for PepsiCo Inc. Stock

If we turn our attention to the moving averages for PepsiCo Inc, there is plenty of reason to celebrate. The current price of PepsiCo is above its 50-day moving average of $103.91 per share. And, it is above its 200-day moving average of $103.63 per share. This price stability is reflective of the stock’s resilience in the face of growing adversity in North America.

Nonetheless, the Coca-Cola company retains an edge over PepsiCo owing to its sheer size and market share. The returns are therefore more stable. In terms of price performance, PepsiCo Inc is in pole position. This is clearly evident in the company’s growth rate in 2016. Over the past 6-month period, PepsiCo Inc has outstripped the Coca-Cola Company by a long margin. In terms of dividends, PepsiCo plays second fiddle to Coca-Cola, but this is not necessarily reflective of the financial health of the company. For day traders and short-term investors, PepsiCo Inc is the stock to pick.