Sugar-free drinks sweeten results for Coca-Cola, but revenues lose their fizz
Demand for sugar-free drinks helped push Coca-Cola to strong organic revenue figures, despite an overall drop in third-quarter sales.
The figures
The drinkmaker’s revenues declined nine per cent to $8.2bn (£6.4bn) as it refranchised its company-owned bottling plants. Organic revenues — which exclude impacts of mergers and acquisitions and currency fluctuations — meanwhile grew by six per cent.
It increased the number of drinks cases it shipped by two per cent, helped by three per cent growth in Asia.
Profit before tax grew 70 per cent to $2.8bn in the third quarter.
Why it’s important
Facing demand from both consumers and governments trying to reduce sugar intake, the company has seen an uptick in sugar-free alternatives, with its Coca-Cola Zero Sugar brand posting double-digit volume growth.
Coca-Cola is also on the verge of completing its first step into the $500bn global coffee market with the £3.9bn acquisition of Costa.
The company also reiterated its commitment to promoting recycling a day after chancellor Philip Hammond said he would introduce a plastics tax.
Shares in the company increased as much as two per cent after the results.
What Coke said
“We continue to be encouraged by our performance year-to-date as we accelerate our evolution as an even more consumer-centric, total beverage company. The recent leadership appointments are intended to help accelerate the transformation of our company,” said James Quincey chief executive of the Coca-Cola Company.