By Savyata Mishra and Jessica DiNapoli
Dec 11 (Reuters) – Coca-Cola’s decision to make Henrique Braun its next CEO is a bet on the company veteran’s experience in Latin America and China to grow the brand in new markets, appeal to cash-strapped consumers and develop healthier options as tastes change.
The 57-year-old American, who was raised in Brazil, is set to take charge in March as the maker of Coke, Sprite and Fairlife milk has been tweaking the sizes of its packs, and reshaping its offerings, partly through acquisitions, to keep low-income consumers buying and appeal to those who are increasingly health conscious.
Despite consumers staying cautious on spending, Coke is in a position of relative strength, with its stock up about 11% year to date, versus a rise of just 2% in the broader S&P 500 consumer staples index. Main rival PepsiCo has seen shares fall 2% so far this year.
Analysts and investors expect Braun to keep the $302 billion market cap beverage company on stable footing.
“This is evolution not revolution,” said Brian Mulberry, portfolio manager at Zacks Investment Management, which holds shares of Coke. “I don’t see any red flag warnings that would necessitate a radical change.”
One of the biggest challenges is likely to be continued pricing pressure. “The way he can make everyone happy is to control the supply chain to make sure costs aren’t spiraling out of control to require price increases,” Mulberry added.
Current CEO James Quincey, who took the helm in 2017, reversed sales declines at the company, and the stock has grown more than 60% under his tenure.
Quincey inherited a slimmed-down Coke that had mostly shed its vast bottling network, allowing it to focus instead on new products and marketing. PepsiCo’s shares have risen about 35% since its CEO, Ramon Laguarta, was appointed in 2018.
Analysts also say Braun’s challenge will be to accelerate the move to low-sugar and functional beverages like probiotic sodas and electrolytes without sacrificing margins and to grow volumes, all while navigating inflation and tariffs that have ramped up costs.
Part of that acceleration is likely to be continuing Quincey’s acquisition spree, which included high-protein milk company Fairlife and sports drink brand Body Armor.
“After Quincey’s success in adding (more than) 10 billion-dollar brands during his nine-year tenure, acquisitions will likely remain a focus for Braun as well,” Morningstar analyst Dan Su wrote in a note.
Coke is reviewing options including a sale of British coffee chain Costa which it bought in 2018 for over $5 billion, Reuters reported in August.
The CEO move, announced late on Wednesday, marks yet another shake-up among CEOs across the consumer packaged goods space as it reels from a demand slowdown, shifting spending habits and biting U.S. tariffs.
Rival PepsiCo, by contrast, is reviewing its supply chain and cutting costs after facing pressure from activist hedge fund Elliott Management. That could impact Coke, too.
“Pepsi will probably lower prices due to pressure from an activist investor, which will put pressure on Coke’s margins as well,” if Coke has to respond with its own cuts, said Bruce Winder, retail analyst and industry expert.
(Reporting by Savyata Mishra in Bengaluru and Jessica DiNapoli in New York; Editing by Maju Samuel)
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