PepsiCo Inc said on Wednesday it would buy Rockstar Energy Beverages for $3.85-billion, in the soda giant’s biggest push into the energy drinks market, where larger rival Coca-Cola Co has been rapidly expanding.
PepsiCo has a smaller presence in the energy space with its Mountain Dew Kickstart and Mountain Dew Game Fuel brands. The company already distributes Rockstar products in some markets.
Coca-Cola, which owns a stake in Rockstar rival Monster Beverage Co, rolled out its own Coke branded energy drinks in the United States earlier this year, after launching it in European markets months earlier.
Rockstar was founded in 2001 in Las Vegas and relies on sponsorship of action sports and music festivals as its main means of marketing.
The global energy drinks market is dominated by Austria’s Red Bull.
Pepsi said the deal is not expected to impact its revenue or earnings per share in 2020.
Centerview Partners LLC is the financial adviser to PepsiCo, while Gibson, Dunn & Crutcher LLP is the lead counsel. Rockstar’s financial adviser is Goldman Sachs and King & Spalding its legal counsel.