Anheuser-Busch InBev reports global revenue grew 4% in the third quarter billion as global volume grew 1.9%. That’s what ABI said at the top of a press release reporting earnings .
But that’s not what the consolidated income statement at the end of the release showed. It showed revenue fell to $12.82 billion in the third quarter from $13.17 billion in “3Q19.” That would be a decline of 2.7%, not the “organic growth” of 4% that ABI is touting on the same line of its consolidated income statement. .
What ABI has done is mix apples and oranges — GAAP accounting and organic accounting. In a statement, they said they wanted to present an accurate picture of their operations.
We agree that GAAP is a fiction. But so is“organic” accounting. The best way to handle this, we think, is to clearly report both numbers, as does Brown-Forman Corp. and some other companies.
Third-quarter global profit fell 65.4% to $1.4 billion, or 52 cents a share, from $3 billion, or $1.51 a share.
For North America, ABI reports in Annex 1 of its release third-quarter revenue of $29.53 billion, up from $29.01 billion in the 2019 third quarter. That produces revenue growth of 1.8% in North America, slightly better than the “organic growth” ABI shows of 1.5%.
ABI said its U.S. business “delivered a strong quarter,” gaining 25 basis points of market share as sales-to-retailers grew 1.4%, outperforming the industry that was up 0.8%. Sales to retailers increased 1% and total revenue in the U.S. grew 4.5%.
“Our above core portfolio (in the U.S.) delivered an estimated market share gain of 145 bps in 3Q20, fueled by the continued growth of Bud Light Seltzer and Michelob Ultra. Michelob Ultra accelerated in 3Q20 and remains the second-highest selling beer by dollars in the U.S. after Bud Light, according to IRI. In addition, our portfolio of seltzers grew at double the rate of the industry. Our mainstream brands lost an estimated 120 bps of total market share as consumers continue to trade up to more premium brands, though within the mainstream segment we estimate we increased our share by 15 bps,” the company said in its release.