A worker puts on Tuesday, February 9, 2021 an exhibition of soft drinks from Coca-Cola Co. in a store in Orem, Utah, USA on.
George Frey | Bloomberg | Getty Images
Coca-Cola reported Monday that quarterly demand was unchanged from the same time last year as North America and Western Europe take longer to bounce back from the coronavirus pandemic.
However, the global unit cases volume in March returned to 2019 levels.
“We are encouraged by improvements in our business, especially in markets where vaccine availability is increasing and economies are starting to open up, and we remain confident in our full year-round management,” CEO James Quincey said in a statement.
The company’s shares rose by less than 1% in pre-trading.
This is what the company reported compared to what Wall Street expected, based on a survey by analysts by Refinitiv:
- Earnings per share: 55 cents, adjusted, compared to 50 cents expected
- Revenue: $ 9.02 billion versus $ 8.6 billion expected
The liquor giant had a net income of $ 2.25 billion, or 52 cents per share,’s fiscal first quarter, a year earlier, down from $ 2.78 billion, or 64 cents per share.
Excluding items, Coke earns 55 cents per share, above the 50 cents per share expected by analysts surveyed by Refinitiv.
Net sales rose 5% to $ 9.02 billion, beating expectations of $ 8.6 billion. Organic revenue grew by 6%, while unit cash volume was the same as a year ago. Coke said demand improved every month of the quarter, driven by markets such as China where the uncertainty associated with the virus has dropped.
The company repeated its forecast for organic revenue growth in the high single digits for the full year and adjusted its earnings growth in a series of high single digits to low double digits.
In a separate submission, Coke announced plans for a public listing of Coca-Cola Beverages Africa. The company will sell a portion of its shares in the initial public offering, which is expected within the next 18 months.