American Tower Corporation (AMT) vs PepsiCo, Inc. (PEP) Stock Comparison

Compare Stocks › AMT vs PEP

AMT

American Tower Corporation

$182.76

PEP

PepsiCo, Inc.

$152.74

Rewards

AMT

★Gross margin of 74.2% indicates strong pricing power — typical of businesses with significant intellectual property or brand strength.
★Free cash flow has grown at a 27.6% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.
★Return on equity has consistently exceeded 20% over 4 years, indicating efficient use of shareholder capital.

PEP

★PepsiCo, Inc. has maintained ROIC above 15% for 4 consecutive years, indicating a durable competitive advantage.
★PepsiCo, Inc. scores 88/100 on the Economic Moat Score (Wide Moat), with revenue predictability as the strongest competitive dimension.
★Free cash flow has grown at a 11.0% CAGR over the past 4 years, demonstrating strong earnings power growth.

Risks

AMT

⚠FCF yield of 5.3% suggests reasonable valuation assuming continued moderate growth.
⚠High leverage (4.34x debt/equity) combined with thin interest coverage (-1.0x) poses financial risk.
⚠Net debt/EBITDA of 6.3x indicates heavy leverage — it would take over 4 years of EBITDA to pay off net debt.

PEP

⚠High leverage (2.58x debt/equity) combined with thin interest coverage (-1.0x) poses financial risk.
⚠Insiders have sold $4.7M worth of stock in the past 3 months — significant insider liquidation.

Key Valuation Metrics

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AMT

PEP

Valuation

$4.51B

Free Cash Flow

$8.23B

5.27%

FCF Yield

3.94%

33.91

Trailing P/E

25.46

26.45

Forward P/E

16.73

Quality & Moat

6.83%

ROIC

14.19%

24.43%

ROE

40.10%

74.18%

Gross Margin

54.46%

N/A

PEG Ratio

0.38

Balance Sheet Safety

4.34

Debt / Equity

2.58

N/A

Interest Coverage

N/A

6.30

Net Debt / EBITDA

2.39

3.77%

Dividend Yield

3.73%

AMT: 2Ties: 2PEP: 7

AMTPEP

Historical Fundamentals

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AMT

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

PEP

Price ÷ Earnings Per Share — how many years of current earnings you're paying for at today's price. Lower P/E may indicate undervaluation.

$1 Retained Earnings Test

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AMT

N/A

Net losses over 3 years — test not applicable

Company had negative cumulative retained earnings

Σ Retained

$-2.91B

Δ Market Cap

$-16.77B

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

PEP

$-9.83

created per $1 retained over 3 years

Market Cap Declined

Σ Retained

$5.34B

Δ Market Cap

$-52.53B

Buffett's "$1 Test": For every $1 of earnings retained, has management created at least $1 of market value?
> $1 created per $1 retained = Value Creator · < $1 created = Value Destroyer

Discounted Cash Flow (DCF) Analysis

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AMT

1072.0% Overvalued

Price is 1072.0% above estimated fair value

Current Price: $182.76

Strongly undervalued

Strongly overvalued

Fair Value: $15.59

Strongly undervalued

Undervalued

Fairly valued

Overvalued

Strongly overvalued

PEP

81.1% Overvalued

Price is 81.1% above estimated fair value

Current Price: $152.74

Strongly undervalued

Fairly valued

Strongly overvalued

Fair Value: $84.35

Strongly undervalued

Undervalued

Fairly valued

Overvalued

Strongly overvalued

Reverse DCF — Market-Implied Growth

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AMT

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $183?

+20.5%

Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth

Standard FCF implies +12.6%

The market implies +20.5% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +12.6%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

PEP

What growth rate is the market pricing in at $153?

+13.5%

Market-Implied Owner Earnings Growth

Standard FCF implies +13.5%

The market implies +13.5% Owner Earnings growth, above historical trends.

Standard FCF implies a demanding +13.5%, reflecting heavy growth investment.

Economic Moat Score

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AMT

51/100

Narrow Moat

70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Narrow moat with revenue predictability as the key competitive advantage. Improving roic consistency would strengthen the moat.

Composite score measuring competitive advantage durability across four dimensions: returns above cost of capital, pricing power stability, revenue predictability, and capital efficiency. Based on 4 years of fundamental data.

PEP

88/100

Wide Moat

70+ Wide · 40-69 Narrow · <40 None

Wide moat with strength across all dimensions. Revenue Predictability is the standout factor.

Forensic Accounting

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AMT

-2.49

Unlikely Manipulator

Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Beneish's 8-variable model estimates the probability of earnings manipulation. An M-Score above -1.78 signals elevated risk — companies in this range have historically been 3-5× more likely to be manipulating earnings. Scores between -2.22 and -1.78 fall in a grey zone warranting further investigation.

PEP

-2.57

Unlikely Manipulator

Above -1.78 = likely manipulator · -2.22 to -1.78 = grey zone

M-Score Trend

Ownership Breakdown

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AMT

Insiders 0.2%Institutions 96.1%Retail & Other 3.8%

No. of Institutional Holders2,413

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders — a key signal in Buffett-style analysis. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

PEP

Insiders 0.2%Institutions 79.9%Retail & Other 19.9%

No. of Institutional Holders4,357

High insider ownership aligns management incentives with shareholders. Institutional concentration can indicate smart-money conviction but also crowding risk.

Insider Buying Activity

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AMT

Buys (3M)

Buys (12M)

Total value (12M): $1.49M

KALATHUR RAJESH

Director

$494,936

@ $185.30 · 2026-03-10

REILLY EUGENE F

Director

$994,110

@ $178.99 · 2025-10-31

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

PEP

Buys (3M)

Buys (12M)

No open market insider purchases found.

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises

Open market purchases · includes direct & indirect ownership · excludes option exercises.

Insider Selling Activity

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AMT

Sells (3M)

Sells (12M)

Total value (12M): $22.01M

VONDRAN STEVEN OWEN

Chief Executive Officer

$6.31M

@ $188.46 · 2026-03-04

DOWLING RUTH T

General Counsel

$128,564

@ $188.51 · 2026-03-04

NOEL EUGENE M

Chief Operating Officer

$7.87M

@ $191.05 · 2026-03-02

MEYER ROBERT JOSEPH JR

Officer

$831,695

@ $186.73 · 2026-02-27

DOWLING RUTH T

General Counsel

$122,121

@ $186.16 · 2026-02-27

SMITH RODNEY M

Chief Financial Officer

$6.60M

@ $192.09 · 2026-02-17

FONT JUAN HERNANDEZ

Officer

$149,998

@ $208.33 · 2025-07-31

GOEL SANJAY

Officer

$863,680

@ $215.92 · 2025-03-17

MEYER ROBERT JOSEPH JR

Officer

$1.14M

@ $201.67 · 2025-02-27

REEVE PAMELA D A

Director

$1.01M

@ $202.97 · 2025-02-26

SMITH RODNEY M

Chief Financial Officer

$3.14M

@ $189.70 · 2025-02-13

SMITH RODNEY M

Chief Financial Officer

$3.00M

@ $181.10 · 2025-01-16

GOEL SANJAY

Officer

$1.19M

@ $238.00 · 2024-09-13

NOEL EUGENE M

Officer

$7.95M

@ $240.00 · 2024-09-10

PUECH OLIVIER

Officer

$4.37M

@ $230.00 · 2024-09-03

PUECH OLIVIER

Officer

$2.26M

@ $226.35 · 2024-08-26

MEYER ROBERT JOSEPH JR

Officer

$508,020

@ $232.93 · 2024-08-02

VONDRAN STEVEN OWEN

Chief Executive Officer

$4.95M

@ $230.00 · 2024-08-02

PUECH OLIVIER

Officer

$2.33M

@ $233.27 · 2024-08-02

GOEL SANJAY

Officer

$1.13M

@ $235.39 · 2024-08-02

GOEL SANJAY

Officer

$702,061

@ $200.36 · 2024-06-04

HORMATS ROBERT D.

Director

$128,450

@ $183.50 · 2024-05-03

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

PEP

Sells (3M)

Sells (12M)

Total value (12M): $4.68M

LAGUARTA RAMON L

Chief Executive Officer

$4.68M

@ $167.39 · 2026-03-02

GALLAGHER MARIE T

Officer

$3.99M

@ $159.55 · 2025-03-04

FLAVELL DAVID JAMES

General Counsel

$1.04M

@ $150.90 · 2025-03-03

LAGUARTA RAMON L

Chief Executive Officer

$7.74M

@ $154.90 · 2025-03-03

KRISHNAN RAMKUMAR

Chief Executive Officer

$1.50M

@ $150.97 · 2025-03-03

WILLIAMS STEVEN C

Officer

$2.71M

@ $150.89 · 2025-03-03

SANTILLI PAULA ALEJANDRA

Officer

$1.18M

@ $151.89 · 2025-02-27

FLAVELL DAVID JAMES

General Counsel

$1.19M

@ $179.86 · 2024-05-10

KRISHNAN RAMKUMAR

Officer

$1.00M

@ $178.00 · 2024-05-09

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives

Direct ownership only · excludes indirect, option exercises, planned (10b5-1) sales & derivatives.

🎭 Mr. Market's Mood

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AMT

😐Neutral(41/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on 6 market signals. Inspired by Buffett's "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

PEP

😐Neutral(50/100)

"Market is pricing this stock without strong emotion in either direction"

Composite sentiment score based on market signals. Inspired by Buffett’s "Mr. Market" allegory — fear = potential opportunity, greed = potential risk. Must be used alongside fundamental analysis, not in isolation.

⚖️ Buffett Signal

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AMT

⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (41)

PEP

⚪Awaiting DCF Data

The Buffett Signal cross-references market sentiment with DCF valuation. Configure the DCF Analysis above to generate a signal.

DCF Margin of Safety: N/AMr. Market's Mood: Neutral (50)

View AMT Full Analysis View PEP Full Analysis