Coca-Cola Tops Earnings and Revenue Estimates but Says Demand for Drinks Is Still Soft

Coca-Cola reported its fiscal third-quarter earnings before the bell on Tuesday.

U.S.-listed shares of the company rose 2% in premarket trading.

Here’s what the company reported compared with what Wall Street analysts surveyed by LSEG were expecting:

• Adjusted earnings per share: 82 cents, vs. expected 78 cents

• Adjusted revenue: $12.41 billion, vs. expected $12.39 billion

In recent quarters, Coke has reported weaker demand in some key markets, like the U.S. and Latin America. Still, analysts are broadly more bullish on the company than its rival PepsiCo, which is beginning a turnaround focused on reinvesting in its brands and cutting costs. Earlier this month, Pepsi reported better-than-expected quarterly earnings and revenue, despite another three months of weaker volume for its snacks and drinks.

For the full year, Coke is expecting comparable earnings per share to rise 3% and organic revenue growth of 5% to 6%.

The beverage giant is also reportedly looking to sell Costa Coffee, the British coffee chain it acquired in 2019 for $4.9 billion. Last quarter, Coke CEO James Quincey said that the company’s investment in Costa hasn’t yielded the growth in its ready-to-drink coffee and at-home Express machines that Coke expected at the time of the acquisition.

Shares of Coke have risen nearly 10% this year, increasing its market value to about $295 billion.