Heineken third-quarter revenue beats expectations

Dutch brewer Heineken posted a jump in third-quarter profit and revenue as it benefited from a warm summer and strong sales in Europe and the Americas.

Heineken said revenue rose 8% to €5.5bn – beating analysts’ expectations – while net profit came in at €1.78bn from €1.09bn in the same period last year, including a net exceptional gain from the sale of its Mexican packaging unit Empaque.

Consolidated beer volume increased 5.4% organically, with positive growth in Europe, the Americas and Asia Pacific, and flat volume in Africa, Middle East and Eastern Europe.

Chairman of the executive board and chief executive officer Jean-Francois van Boxmeer said: “Our strong performance in the third quarter is consistent with our earlier 2015 full-year guidance that volume would be weighted to the second half of the year.

“Heineken’s well-balanced global footprint, excellent portfolio of brands, including the recent addition of Red Stripe and partnership with Lagunitas, combined with a powerful innovation agenda are expected to continue to deliver positive top and bottom line growth."

In addition, the company said on Wednesday that it has decided to suspend its €750m share buyback problem in light of recently-announced acquisitions in order to maintain full financial flexibility.

At 1440 GMT, Heineken shares were up 2.9% at €73.04.