WRONG ON EVERY BIG CALL: THE RAMON RECORD
Forget personality. Judge the decisions.
CALL #1: Keep and integrate bottling.
Dec 2025: refranchising "not under consideration."
Oct 2026: "open to revisiting every option."
Result: 10 months to reverse his own flagship strategy.
CALL #2: We can win in soda.
Dr Pepper passed Pepsi as the #2 US soda.
Oct 2026, his words: "We are not competing well in soft drinks."
CALL #3: Integration will expand margins.
PBNA reported operating margin: 9.4% → 8.3% → 3.9% (2023-2025).
Q3 2026 core margin went DOWN, not up.
CALL #4: Our guidance is credible.
Cut in April 2025. Cut again October 2026.
CALL #5: The strategy creates shareholder value.
Total return since he took over (Oct 2018 to Oct 2026):
PepsiCo +53%. Coca-Cola +144%. S&P 500 +199%.
Stock: $196 peak (2023) → $128 now. Lowest close since 2020 this week.
WHO PAID FOR IT:
~$6B in restructuring charges, about half severance. Plants closed. 20% of SKUs cut. More cuts coming.
Frontline jobs absorbed the misses. Leadership didn't.
Five big calls. Five reversals or misses. Seven years.
At what point does "not satisfied with the performance" apply to the person running it?