Monster Beverage Reports Q3 Earnings Miss

(Reuters) – Monster Beverage (NASDAQ:MNST) missed Wall Street estimates for third-quarter sales and profit on Thursday, as cost-conscious consumers cut back spending on its higher-priced beverages.

Shares of the company were down about 3% after the bell.

Consumers, especially from low to middle-income groups, have been curbing their cravings for branded non-alcoholic drinks and opting for cheaper alternatives.

This has hurt sales of companies like Monster Beverage, Keurig Dr Pepper (NASDAQ:KDP) and PepsiCo (NASDAQ:PEP), while Coca-Cola (NYSE:KO) was able to attract customers with tight budgets in the United States.

For the third quarter, the company posted net sales of $1.88 billion, compared with analysts' average estimate of $1.91 billion, according to data compiled by LSEG.

On an adjusted basis, it posted a profit of 40 cents per share, compared with estimates of 43 cents per share.

"Hurricanes Helene and Milton impacted sales at retail in certain states in September and October; however, we cannot determine the impact on our business," said CEO Hilton Schlosberg.

However, benefits from taking 5% price hikes during the quarter ended Sept. 30, coupled with lower input costs, helped the company's margins.

Monster's quarterly gross profit as a percentage of sales was 53.2%, compared to 53.0% a year ago.