Pepsi Court Win Over ‘Rise’ Trademark Upheld By Court: Retail’s Upbeat

Shares of Pepsico were up 0.87% on Friday afternoon following a ruling by a US Appeals court upholding a previous trademark violation verdict in favor of the consumer giant, lifting retail sentiment.  

The trademark infringement lawsuit was brought against Pepsi in 2021 by canned coffee maker Rise Brewing, which claimed Pepsi's marketing of its energy drink  "Mtn Dew Rise"  infringed on the coffee company's trademark.

Rise Brewing, which sells its canned coffee products nation-wide, had alleged Pepsi launched its competing caffeine drink after several meetings to discuss a partnership between the two companies, according to media reports.

Pepsi was barred from using 'Rise' for some time following a lower court decision but subsequently lost out when the case was appealed.

The 2nd U.S. Circuit Court of Appeals has now upheld the federal judge ruling from earlier, saying Pepsi's drink was not likely to cause consumer confusion with Rise's brand, Reuters reported.

“Actual confusion ensued,” Christopher McArdle, an attorney with Alston Bird representing Rise, reportedly told the panel Thursday speaking of the competing names.

Retail sentiment on the stock jumped to ‘bullish’ from ‘extremely bearish’ a day ago.

PEP sentiment meter and message volumes on Dec 20 as of 4:45 pm ET

Pepsi is yet to comment on the developments.

Pepsi is set to announce its fourth-quarter and full-year 2024 financial results on Tuesday, February 4. Analysts expect the company to post EPS of $1.95 on revenue of $27.95 billion.

Pepsi stock is down 11.6% year-to-date.

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