PepsiCo forecast surprise drop in 2019 core profit

(Reuters) - PepsiCo Inc forecast a surprise drop in full-year profit that was well below Wall Street estimates on Friday, hit by a stronger dollar, higher tax rate and increased investments in the business.

The company expects 2019 adjusted profit per share to drop 3 percent to $5.50, while analysts on average were expecting a 3.5 percent rise in profit to $5.86 per share, according to IBES data from Refinitiv.

Rival Coca-Cola Co also warned on Thursday that its earnings per share could fall in 2019, citing the strengthening dollar.

(Reporting by Aishwarya Venugopal in Bengaluru; Editing by Bernard Orr)