Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE:BUD) the world’s biggest brewer, on Thursday smashed profit expectations during a quarter that saw a social media-driven boycott of its bestselling Bud Light beer in the U.S.
The Belgium-based Budweiser owner said its revenue rose by 7.2% globally, as price hikes offset a 1.4% fall in volumes. The company said organic growth in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) was 5%, above a consensus forecast of 0.4%.
The company also reiterated its full-year and medium-term profit outlook. Last month, the company announced hundreds of job cuts impacting various areas of the business.
The Bud Light boycott was a response led by high-profile online personalities to the brand’s brief sponsorship partnership with transgender influencer Dylan Mulvaney, who was sent a bottle of the beer to promote in a video at the start of April.
The partnership sparked one of the most talked-about marketing furores in recent years, with Bud Light in May losing its spot as the top-selling beer in the United States to Constellation Brands’ (NYSE:STZ) Modelo, as sales fell 25%. AB InBev’s U.S. revenues were down 10.5% in the second quarter, according to its results, as core profit fell 28.2%.
The company then faced criticism for failing to support Mulvaney in the wake of the controversy, which attracted political attention and led to the reported suspension of the marketing executive who oversaw the partnership.
BUD shares gathered 70 cents, or 1.2%, to $56.93.
