Coca-Cola sees sales fizz
COCA-COLA yesterday reported higher-than-expected quarterly sales, as it gained market share and also saw growth in each of its major markets for the first time in years.
Shares of the world’s largest soft-drink maker rose 1.5 per cent.
The results released yesterday are Coke’s first to include its North American bottling operations, and improvement in the company’s home region signalled success for the acquisition.
Both Coke and rival PepsiCo acquired their North American bottlers last year as a way to improve performance by cutting costs, speeding innovation and giving them more control over distribution.
Coke said net income was $5.77bn (£3.6bn), or $2.46 per share, in the fourth-quarter, up from $1.54bn, or 66 cents per share, a year earlier.
Excluding items, earnings were 72 cents per share, meeting analysts’ average estimate.
Net revenue jumped 40 per cent to $10.5bn, topping analysts’ estimate of $10bn, with the bulk of the gain due to the October bottler acquisition.