US-based beer, wine and spirits maker Constellation Brands has cut its fiscal 2025 outlook as consumers remain cautious around spending.
The company now projects organic net sales growth of 2–5%, down from its previous forecast of 4–6%.
Alongside the release of its results on Friday (10 January), president and CEO Bill Newlands said in a statement that the group had reduced its outlook due to “near-term uncertainty on when consumers will revert to more normalised spending".
He added Constellation continued to see "subdued spend and value-seeking behaviour" from consumers which first "emerged" in its second quarter.
For its beer segment, a major revenue driver, Constellation now expects net sales to grow 4-7%, down from the prior 6-8% increase laid out in October.
The group has also increased its forecast of net sales declines in its wine-and-spirits division from 4-6% to 5-8%.
Operating income growth expectations for beer have been reduced to 9–12% from 11–12%, while wine-and-spirits is expected to see a wider operating income decline of 17–19%, compared to the earlier range of 16–18%.
The Modelo beer and Kim Crawford wine producer also lowered reported earnings per share (EPS) guidance to $3.90-$4.30 from $4.05-$4.25, while comparable EPS was revised to $13.40-$13.80 from $13.60-$13.80.
In the third quarter period ended 30 November, Constellation's net sales remained flat year-on-year at $2.46bn. Operating income also grew just 0.5% compared to the year prior, to $793m.
The company’s beer sales rose 3% to $2.03bn in the third quarter period, driven by a 1.6% increase in shipment volumes.
However, wine-and-spirits faced a 14% slump in net sales to $431.4m, largely driven by a 16.4% drop in shipment volumes, which was attributed to “weaker consumer demand” and ongoing “retailer inventory destocking” in the US wholesale market.
In the nine months ended 30 November, the Corona brand owner in the US booked $8bn in net sales, up 2.6% on 2023. Gross profit was up 5% to $4.2bn, while operating income dipped 80% to $505m.
