Soft Drinks 13Fs: Coca-Cola, PepsiCo, Keurig Dr Pepper, Monster

US soft drinks equities form a distinctive consumer staples corner of institutional 13F positioning. Coca-Cola (KO), PepsiCo (PEP), Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP), Monster Beverage (MNST), Celsius Holdings (CELH), plus Primo Brands (PRMB, formed from Primo Water-BlueTriton merger) anchor the cohort. Multi-year emerging sugar-soda volume decline, energy drink secular growth, plus emerging emerging GLP-1 obesity drug consumer behavior impact drive distinctive institutional positioning. Reading soft drinks 13F positioning requires understanding the category framework plus the multi-year consumer behavior dynamics.

The soft drinks business model

Soft drinks companies operate four primary economic engines:

1. Sugar-soda volume decline. Multi-year emerging sugar-soda volume decline drives category headwind. Multi-year emerging US carbonated soft drink (CSD) volume declined -1 to -2% annually with multi-year emerging accelerated decline at sugar-sweetened formats. Multi-year emerging emerging diet plus zero-sugar reformulation plus emerging emerging mini-can (7.5oz) plus emerging emerging premium pricing offsets volume.
2. Energy drink growth. Multi-year emerging US energy drink category grew double-digit annually driving multi-year category share gain. Multi-year emerging Monster Beverage plus Red Bull (private) plus emerging emerging Celsius Holdings plus emerging emerging Bang Energy (acquired by Monster 2023) plus emerging emerging Alani Nu plus emerging emerging C4 Energy drive category competition. Multi-year emerging emerging convenience store distribution drives growth.
3. GLP-1 impact emerging. Multi-year emerging GLP-1 obesity drug adoption (Ozempic, Wegovy, Zepbound, Mounjaro) drives multi-year emerging consumer behavior change. Multi-year emerging GLP-1 users reduce soft drink consumption (early data suggests 15-25% reduction across snacks plus sugar beverages). Multi-year emerging GLP-1 adoption could reach 30M+ Americans by 2030 driving multi-year emerging category pressure.
4. Premium plus emerging emerging zero-sugar transition. Multi-year emerging premium plus zero-sugar transition drives pricing-mix shift. Multi-year emerging premium beverages (Topo Chico, Body Armor, Vitaminwater, Smartwater) plus emerging emerging zero-sugar (Coke Zero Sugar, Pepsi Zero Sugar) plus emerging emerging functional beverages drive premium pricing.

Major US soft drinks names

Coca-Cola (KO)

Largest global soft drinks plus emerging emerging Topo Chico plus emerging emerging Body Armor plus emerging emerging Costa Coffee plus emerging emerging fairlife dairy plus emerging emerging BodyArmor sports drink. Multi-year emerging operational scaling plus emerging emerging dividend aristocrat (62-year dividend growth).

PepsiCo (PEP)

Diversified Pepsi beverages plus Frito-Lay plus Quaker Foods. Multi-year emerging operational scaling plus emerging emerging diversified beverages-snacks combination plus emerging emerging Siete Foods acquisition (2025) plus emerging emerging dividend aristocrat.

Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP)

Diversified Keurig coffee plus Dr Pepper plus Snapple plus 7UP plus emerging emerging Ghost Energy (acquired 2024) plus emerging emerging Athletic Brewing minority investment. Multi-year emerging operational scaling.

Monster Beverage (MNST)

Largest US energy drinks (Monster Energy, Reign, Bang Energy acquired 2023). Multi-year emerging operational scaling plus emerging emerging international expansion plus emerging emerging Coca-Cola distribution partnership.

Celsius Holdings (CELH)

Functional energy drinks (Celsius energy drink). Multi-year emerging operational scaling plus emerging emerging Pepsi distribution partnership (since 2022). Multi-year emerging emerging 2024 deceleration plus emerging emerging emerging 2025 trajectory.

Primo Brands (PRMB)

Diversified bottled water (Poland Spring, Deer Park, Ice Mountain, Arrowhead, Ozarka, plus emerging emerging Mountain Valley, Saratoga). Multi-year emerging Primo Water-BlueTriton merger combination (closed November 2024).

How institutional managers position around soft drinks

Three patterns appear across smart-money 13Fs:

Pattern 1: Quality-defensive concentration

KO, PEP-concentrated income-focused manager positions reflect dividend aristocrat plus emerging emerging operational scaling thesis.

Pattern 2: Energy-growth positioning

MNST, CELH-concentrated growth manager positions reflect energy drink category growth thesis.

Pattern 3: Coffee-positioning

KDP-concentrated active manager positions reflect Keurig coffee plus emerging emerging Dr Pepper thesis.

How to read soft drinks 13F positioning

Three rules apply:

Rule 1: Identify category exposure

CSD vs energy vs water vs coffee have distinct dynamics.

Rule 2: Watch volume-pricing trajectory

Multi-year volume-pricing spread drives revenue.

Rule 3: Cross-check GLP-1 dynamics

Multi-year GLP-1 adoption drives consumer behavior.

What soft drinks positioning signals

1. Quality-defensive conviction. Concentrated KO, PEP positions signal dividend-defensive thesis.
2. Energy-growth conviction. Concentrated MNST positions signal energy drink growth thesis.
3. Coffee-Dr Pepper conviction. Concentrated KDP positions signal coffee-Dr Pepper thesis.

For real-time tracking of soft drinks 13F activity, see the institutional signals feed.