MillerCoors LLC reported first quarter net income of $295.6 million, up from $274.4 million in the first quarter of 2013.
Revenue was $1.8 billion, flat from $1.8 billion in the same period a year ago.
The Chicago-based brewer, which manufactures much of its product in Milwaukee, attributed the income growth to a positive pricing and sales mix, cost savings and lower market spending mainly driven by timing changes from last year.
Tenth and Blake Beer Co., named for the Chicago-based brewery’s Colorado and Milwaukee craft brewing facilities, declined in the mid-single digits. The craft arm has previously driven the company’s growth.
“In the first quarter, we continued to gain share in the high-margin and fast-growing above premium space with Miller Fortune and the Redd’s franchise,” said Tom Long, MillerCoors chief executive officer. “In above premium, we are expanding the category and attracting new legal drinking age consumers to beer with our innovations and brands like Leinenkugel’s and Blue Moon. The key to our success will be our performance in premium lights, which have been particularly challenged recently, including in the first quarter. We have made Miller Lite more relevant for millennials by bringing back the original Lite can, and we gained share in the premium light segment. This month, we will continue to engage legal drinking age millennials around premium lights with the release of Coors Light’s first line extension, Coors Light Summer Brew.”
