This year’s late Easter holiday contributed to a 6.7% jump in snack and non-alcoholic beverage sales for the four-week period ending April 20, according to a Wells Fargo Securities analysis of Nielsen’s all channel sales data report.
The Coca-Cola Company led in total beverage sales, reporting 4.3% dollar sales growth in the four-week period and 2.8% growth in the 52-week period. PepsiCo total beverage and snack sales grew at 3.9% for the month, and 2% year-over-year. Keurig Dr Pepper (KDP) reported 1.9% growth for the month and 2.3% growth year-over-year.
Total sales for carbonated soft drinks improved, up 4.9% during the four-week period, driven by a 6% jump in average unit price, which offset a 1% decline in unit sales. Coke led the category with 7% dollar sales growth in the four-week period and 4.4% growth for the 52-week period. In contrast to key competitors PepsiCo and KDP, Coke — which has previously reported turnarounds in declining CSD sales thanks to a bevy of new flavor innovations released over the past year for its Diet Coke and core lines — saw a 1.4% increase in unit sales and a 5.5% increase in average unit price. PepsiCo saw a smaller 3.9% increase in dollar sales for the four-week period and only 0.6% growth year-over-year, reporting a 1.3% decline in unit sales and a 5.2% increase in average unit price. KDP reported 3.6% dollar sales growth for the month and 3.8% growth year-over year, with a 4.3% decrease in unit sales but an above average 8.2% jump in average unit price.
Additionally, National Beverage Corp. — which makes LaCroix — reported 7.4% dollar sales growth for the four-week period and 0.2% increase for the 52-week period. The company reported a 10.8% spike in unit sales but a 3% decline in average unit price.
The energy category — including coffee- and tea-based energy drinks — continues to show strength, reporting 10.5% dollar sales growth for the category with a 5% increase in unit sales and 5.2% rise in average unit price in the four-week period. Despite the overall lift, category leader Monster Energy Company continues to feel pressure in the market, reporting a 0.9% decline in dollar sales for the month (versus 8.4% growth for the 52-week period) with a 6.9% decline in unit sales and 6.4% rise in average unit price. Inversely, Red Bull saw a 7.6% increase in dollar sales with 8.4% unit sales growth and a 0.7% drop in average unit price in the four-week period.
Rockstar dropped 12.3% in dollar sales for the four-week period, with unit sales down 15.5%. The company is down 6.1% year-over-year in dollar sales. Starbucks — through its North American Coffee Partnership — saw 10.6% growth in dollar sales for the month (versus 1.7% growth for the year) with unit sales up 7.4% and average unit price up 3%. Despite Starbucks’ growing energy coffee products, dollar sales of its leading Doubleshot RTD line were down 7.3% in the four-week period.
Once again flashing its ability to disrupt the energy category, Bang continued its triple-digit growth momentum with a dollar sales increase of 692%, giving it an 8.7% dollar share of the category in the month. The Florida-based brand reported $514 million in retail sales for the 52-week period.
Sports drinks saw an 11.8% rise in dollar sales and 6.5% unit sales growth for the four-week period. Gatorade-producer PepsiCo continues to lead the space with a 5.3% dollar sales growth increase while Powerade maker and BodyArmor distributor Coke reported 4.5% growth.
Still flavored water saw 5.2% dollar sales growth and 1.8% unit sales growth for the four-week period. Category leader Coke reported a muted 1.6% dollar sales rise, while PepsiCo continues to rise at 15.3% growth. Kraft Heinz was down 8.2% in dollar sales, while Nestle declined 6.1%.
Sparkling flavored water also continues to grow, with the category now reporting $2.4 billion in retail sales for the 52-week period. The category reported a 14.6% dollar sales rise in the four-week period, up 18.1% for the 52-week period. Unit sales grew 10.9% for the month while average unit price grew 3.4%.
Sparkling Ice maker Talking Rain continues to lead the category, up 22.5% in dollar sales and 23.2% in unit sales for the month. The company last year announced a revised channel strategy and has increased its marketing efforts. Meanwhile, LaCroix maker National Beverage Corp reported a 7.8% decline in dollar sales and an 8.9% drop in unit sales. Nestle saw 17% dollar sales growth for the month, while Polar Corp reported 20.3% dollar sales growth and KDP saw 4.8% dollar sales growth.
Coffee was up 8% in dollar sales for the four-week period, led by Starbucks which saw 5.5% dollar sales growth for its iced coffee and cold brew lines. Coke reported an 11.6% decline in coffee dollar sales, while various smaller brands combined saw 53.4% dollar sales growth for the month.
Tea was up 2.1% for the month in dollar sales, led by PepsiCo with 1.5% dollar sales growth. KDP reported 2.5% growth for its tea products in the period, while Coke dropped 0.6%.
Bottled water was up 6.5% in dollar sales for the month, with unit sales up 6.9%. Category leader Nestle was down by 1.4% in dollar sales and 8.6% in unit sales, while Coke saw 2.4% growth in dollar sales and PepsiCo saw 6.4% dollar sales growth.