(Reuters) -Coca-Cola beat Wall Street estimates for fourth-quarter revenue on Tuesday, as the beverage maker benefited from higher product prices and buoyant demand, especially for its namesake drink.
The company has benefited from consumers, who prefer to dine out and indulge in experiences like movies and sports, willing to spend more on their favorite drinks and snacks, which have become pricier over the last several quarters.
This is in contrast to PepsiCo, which last week posted a decline in sales for the first time in 14 quarters, as its move to further raise prices led to a 4% drop in volumes.
But for Coca-Cola, unit case volumes rose 2% and average selling prices increased 9% in the fourth quarter. Still, the Sprite maker forecast weak growth in organic revenue as benefits from price hikes taper off.
Coca-Cola expects fiscal 2024 organic revenue to grow between 6% and 7%, compared to the 12% rise seen in 2023.
It expects annual adjusted profit to be between 4% and 5%, compared to expectations of a 4.5% growth, according to LSEG data
Like several U.S. companies such as Under Armour and Procter & Gamble, Coca-Cola too is seeing a drop in input and freight costs from their pandemic peaks.
That along with the price increases during the quarter helped Coca-Cola post an operating margin of 21% compared with 20.5% a year ago.
Its net revenue rose to $10.95 billion compared with $10.20 billion a year earlier, while analysts estimated $10.68 billion.
Shares of the beverage maker were marginally higher before the bell.
(Reporting by Ananya Mariam Rajesh in Bengaluru; Editing by Arun Koyyur)
