Anheuser-Busch InBev SA (BUD) shares edged higher Thursday after the brewer served up second-quarter results that beat analyst expectations, fueled by organic revenue growth, higher beer volumes, and stronger underlying earnings. The company, whose portfolio includes Budweiser, Corona, and Stella Artois along with more than 500 other beer brands, reported adjusted EPS of $1.21 versus the $1.11 estimate, and sales of $16.66 billion topping the $16.352 billion forecast.
Reported revenue rose 11% year over year, helped by currency translation, while organic revenue increased 5.6%. Revenue per hectoliter climbed 4.2%. Basic EPS jumped to $1.90 from 84 cents, and underlying EPS rose 23.4% from 98 cents. Profit attributable to shareholders more than doubled to $3.75 billion from $1.68 billion, though that included $1.40 billion of non-underlying mark-to-market gains tied to derivative instruments used for equity-related hedging. Underlying profit increased to $2.39 billion from $1.95 billion.
Normalized EBITDA rose 5.8% organically to $5.94 billion, with margin expanding 4 basis points to 35.6%. Total volumes increased 0.9%, including 1.1% growth in beer volumes, while non-beer volumes declined 1.1%.
“Cheers to beer – our performance this quarter reflects the strength of the beer category and the consistent execution of our strategy. Through investment in our megabrands and mega platforms, innovation and offering more choices across more occasions, we are strengthening the cultural relevance of our brands with consumers,” CEO Michel Doukeris said.
On the earnings call, Doukeris noted that the 2026 FIFA World Cup provided a modest boost to beer volumes during the quarter, estimating the tournament contributed about 20 to 30 basis points of volume growth. But he emphasized that the bigger benefit would come over the longer term, highlighting the World Cup as the launchpad for Michelob ULTRA’s expansion across the Americas. Doukeris said 40% of the brand’s second-quarter volume growth came from markets outside the U.S., calling the rollout “one of the best outcomes” of the company’s World Cup investment.
