Coca-Cola raises full-year outlook as earnings beat expectations

Coca-Cola on Tuesday raised its full-year outlook after beating Wall Street’s expectations for its quarterly earnings and revenue.

The company also provided a look toward 2023, saying that it expects inflation to keep raising its expenses and commodity prices to stay volatile. Foreign currency is also projected to weigh on Coke’s earnings and revenue. However, the company won’t provide its full outlook for next year until early 2023.

Shares of the company rose 3% in premarket trading.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street was expecting, based on a survey of analysts by Refinitiv:

• Earnings per share: 69 cents adjusted vs. 64 cents expected
• Revenue: $11.05 billion adjusted vs. $10.52 billion expected

The beverage giant reported third-quarter net income of $2.83 billion, or 65 cents per share, up from $2.47 billion, or 57 cents per share, a year earlier.

Excluding items, Coke earned 69 cents per share.

Adjusted net sales rose 10% to $11.05 billion, topping expectations of $10.52 billion. Organic revenue climbed 16%, fueled by higher prices across Coke’s portfolio.

Unit case volume, which strips out the impact of currency and price changes, grew 4% in the quarter. Other consumer giants, like Tide maker Procter & Gamble, have seen their volume fall as consumers feel inflation hit their wallets. Coke said it’s been trying to appeal to budget-conscious consumers through product offerings like value packs in North America.

Coke’s sparkling soft drinks segment, which includes its namesake soda, reported volume growth of 3%. Coke Zero Sugar was once again a standout, with its volume rising 11% in the quarter.

The company’s hydration, sports, coffee and tea division saw volume growth of 5%, fueled by Powerade, Bodyarmor and the expansion of Costa Coffee.

Coke’s nutrition, juice, dairy and plant-based beverages division reported flat volume for the quarter. Coke said the lackluster performance was due to declining demand for local brands in Eastern Europe.

For 2022, Coke now expects comparable earnings per share growth of 6% to 7%, up from its prior range of 5% to 6%. The company also raised its outlook for organic revenue growth to 14% to 15% from a range of 12% to 13%.

In the fourth quarter, Coke is forecasting that foreign currency will weigh on its comparable net sales by 8% and comparable earnings per share by 9%, including the impact of hedged positions.