Quarterly report pursuant to Section 13 or 15(d)

Income Taxes

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Income Taxes
6 Months Ended
Jul. 02, 2021
Income taxes  
Income Taxes INCOME TAXES
The Company recorded income taxes of $994 million (27.5 percent effective tax rate) and $438 million (19.9 percent effective tax rate) during the three months ended July 2, 2021 and June 26, 2020, respectively. The Company recorded income taxes of $1,502 million (23.5 percent effective tax rate) and $653 million (12.5 percent effective tax rate) during the six months ended July 2, 2021 and June 26, 2020, respectively.
The Company’s effective tax rates for the three and six months ended July 2, 2021 and June 26, 2020 vary from the statutory U.S. federal income tax rate of 21.0 percent primarily due to the tax impact of significant operating and nonoperating items, as described in Note 11, along with the tax benefits of having significant operations outside the United States and significant earnings generated in investments accounted for under the equity method, both of which are generally taxed at rates lower than the statutory U.S. rate.
The Company’s effective tax rates for the three and six months ended July 2, 2021 included $183 million and $176 million, respectively, of net tax expense related to various discrete tax items, primarily changes in tax laws in certain foreign jurisdictions.
The Company’s effective tax rates for the three and six months ended June 26, 2020 included $11 million and $99 million of net tax benefits, respectively, associated with various discrete tax items, including return to provision adjustments, excess tax benefits associated with the Company’s stock-based compensation arrangements, and net tax charges for changes to our uncertain tax positions, including interest and penalties. The Company’s effective tax rate for the six months ended June 26, 2020 also included a tax benefit of $54 million associated with a change in tax law in a foreign jurisdiction as well as a tax benefit of $40 million associated with the gain recorded upon the acquisition of the remaining interest in fairlife. Refer to Note 2 for additional information on the fairlife acquisition.
On November 18, 2020, the Tax Court issued the Opinion regarding the Company’s 2015 litigation with the IRS involving transfer pricing tax adjustments in which the Tax Court predominantly sided with the IRS. The Company strongly disagrees with the Opinion and intends to vigorously defend its position. Refer to Note 8.