MW Samuel Adams's parent company points to gains in light beer as tastes shift from craft brews

By Steve Gelsi

Boston Beer Co. blasts past earnings estimate and gears up for summer as light beer gains traction

Boston Beer Co. said its Samuel Adams American Light light beer has helped it gain shelf space, while craft beer is losing it, as it blew away Wall Street earnings expectations but said it faces an uncertain economy.

"The macroeconomic winds are, obviously, consumer confidence - the fear of inflation. There is also some pullback from the Hispanic consumers that they're not going out as much," said Boston Beer founder and Chairman James Koch, according to a FactSet transcript.

Read more: Corona beer parent sees Hispanic consumers cutting back on spending, social gathering

The company also faces longer-term challenges, including more moderate drinking habits, competition from hemp-based THC beverages, and "reduced sociability" with fewer people going out as much as they did before COVID-19 pandemic, Koch said.

He said he agrees with an industry prediction from Constellation Brands Inc. $(STZ)$ that beer sales will drop by 1% or 2% in 2025.

Despite these realities, the beer and spirits company said it's been pleased with the early results of its national expansion of American Light, as it prepares for the busy summer drinking season.

The brand will be featured in its summer beer-promotion efforts, along with Samuel Adams Summer Ale. It was also featured in the company's March Madness advertising.

Also for the summer, Boston Beer Co. said it plans to increase promotion for its vodka-infused hard tea, Sun Cruise, which has added to its gross margins and is now on sale at larger national chain retailers.

"Sun Cruiser has been well-received by wholesalers, retailers and drinkers," the company said.

For its craft beers, the company said its Dogfish Head Grateful Dead Juicy Pale Ale has launched, with "early traction" in sales at the Las Vegas Sphere.

Looking ahead, Boston Beer Co. expects full-year 2025 earnings of $8 a share to $10.50 a share, compared with the analyst estimate of $9.50 a share.

Outside of this projection, Boston Beer said tariffs could impact its 2025 profit by up to $1.90 a share, or $30 million in profit. Tariffs would affect gross margins by 50 to 100 basis points, the company said.

The company said that tariffs lift the price it pays for aluminum for its cans, as well as point-of-sale materials it buys in China and other countries.

First-quarter revenue increased 6.5% to $453.9 million, well ahead of the FactSet consensus estimate of $435.6 million. The company cited growth in volumes and higher pricing.

First-quarter profit more than doubled to $24.4 million, or $2.16 a share, from $12.6 million, or $1.04 a share, in the year-ago quarter.

Earnings of $2.16 a share beat the analyst estimate of 56 cents a share by a wide margin.

Boston Beer Co.'s stock rose 1.5% in premarket trading. The stock has fallen 19.1% in 2025, while the S&P 500 SPX has fallen by 6.8%, as of Thursday's closing bell.

-Steve Gelsi

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April 25, 2025 08:55 ET (12:55 GMT)

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