Shares of Coca-Cola jumped 3.4% in premarket trading Tuesday, after the beverage giant surprised Wall Street with upbeat first quarter financial results. Atlanta-based Coca-Cola surpassed expectations for both earnings and net revenue aided by beverages such as sports drinks, enhanced water and its namesake sugar-free drinks.
Net revenues were also lifted by price hikes and stockpiling by its bottlers in Europe due to uncertainty around Brexit. Coca-Cola shares were up 2.57% to $48.60 as of 9:51 a.m. ET on the New York Stock Exchange. The stock has gained more than 11% since the gaining of the year.
KO Earnings & Outlook
Coca-Cola reported net income of $1.68 billion, or $0.39 per share, compared with $1.37 billion, or $0.32 per share, in the earlier year period. Excluding one-time costs and gains, earnings came to $0.48 per share in the quarter. Analysts had been calling for adjusted earnings of $0.46 per share, based on figures compiled by Refinitiv.
Net revenue, the company said, was pegged at $8.02 billion, up 5% from $7.63 billion in the first quarter of the previous year. Analysts were expecting net revenue of $7.88 billion according to Refinitiv data.
In the first quarter, global soft drinks sales jumped 1% bolstered by strong performance from Coke Zero as well as its eponymous brand. Sales volume in its dairy, juice and plant-based beverages business were flat, as were sales in its coffee and tea category.
Revenues from its water, enhanced water and sports drinks division, grew 6% during the quarter. The segment has become a key focus as Coca-Cola continues to revamp products for healthy-minded consumers.
For the full year, the company still expects adjusted earnings-per-share range from down 1% to up 1%, and organic revenue growth of 4%.
Coca-Cola CEO Comments
“We’re encouraged by our first quarter results as our disciplined growth strategies continue to deliver strong underlying performance,” commented James Quincey, CEO of Coca-Cola. “We remain confident in our full year guidance as we continue to make progress on our transformation as a consumer-centric total beverage company.”
Coca-Cola Company Profile
The Coca-Cola Company is the largest nonalcoholic beverage company in the world, with over $30 billion in annual revenue. Its portfolio includes a variety of carbonated and noncarbonated brands, including Coca-Cola, Diet Coke, Fanta, Sprite, Minute Maid, Powerade, and Dasani. The firm has both concentrate and finished product operations, with concentrate sales contributing nearly two thirds of revenue.
Trademark Coca-Cola contributes 45% of unit case volumes worldwide. Coca-Cola generates the majority of its revenue outside of the United States. The acquisition of Costa, closed in January 2019, should bolster its presence in the coffee category, particularly in the U.K., where Costa has more than a one third share of coffeehouses.
