Coca-Cola Earnings Preview: Diversifying Into Bottled Water

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The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) will release its earnings for the third quarter of 2013 on Tuesday before the bell rings on Wall Street. Investors will be watching developing world growth closely in the report. As soda drinking continues to decline in developing economies, the firm’s alternative offerings, such as sports drinks and bottled water, will be watched closely.

Coca-Cola Earnings Preview: Diversifying Into Bottled Water

Analysts studying The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) are looking for earnings of 54 cents per share from the company in the report. In the same quarter of 2012 Coca-Cola earned 54 cents per share. The firm is expected to show revenue of $12.1 billion. Last year the company brought in $12.3 billion in revenue.

Coca-Cola soda troubles

The campaign against obesity in the United States and other developed economies has seen growth in the soda market decline and turn negative in recent years. To combat this trend The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) has concentrated its efforts on countries where obesity is not as much of a problem, like China and India, as well as diversifying its offerings beyond sugared drinks.

The firm’s bottled water brands, including Dasani water; its sports drinks, like Powerade and Vitamin Water; and its juice ranges, including the Minute Maid brand, are important growth brands for the company in the developed world. The firm is also trying to increase the popularity of sodas with added sweeteners instead of sugar in order to stymie the decline in consumption.

The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) lost the top spot for the world’s most important brand this year. It was overtaken by tech companies Google Inc (NASDAQ:GOOG) and Apple Inc. (NASDAQ:AAPL) in the rankings. The move shows the declining importance of the firm’s oldest, most important and most famous brand as the market for soft drinks changes in the developing world.

Coca Cola performance

Despite its problems in the developed world, The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) saw some positives early this year. Shares hit a high of $43.43 back in May, but have slumped through the second half of the year. For the months since January 1 shares in the company have risen in value by just over 3%. In the same period the S&P 500 has gained more than 19%.

As The Coca-Cola Company (NYSE:KO) seeks to deal with a different beverage market it will face challenges. Unlike its major competitor PepsiCo Inc. (NYSE:PEP) Coca Cola has not diversified into food leaving it vulnerable to the vagaries of a changing drinks market.

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