Coca-Cola Consolidated(COKE) GlobeNewswire·2025-04-30 20:10Core Insights - Coca-Cola Consolidated, Inc. reported a decline in key financial metrics for the first quarter of 2025, including net sales and income from operations, attributed to fewer selling days and changes in distribution methods [3][5][10]. Financial Performance - Volume decreased by 6.6% in Q1 2025 compared to Q1 2024, with two fewer selling days accounting for approximately 2.1% of this decline [4][5]. - Net sales fell by 0.7% to 40 million or 2.5% of the change [5][7]. - Gross profit decreased by 2.1% to 189.8 million, a decrease of 11.9% from 10 million to this decline [10][11]. Beverage Sales - Sparkling beverage sales decreased by 1.9%, while still beverage sales saw a smaller decline of 0.5% compared to the previous year [6]. - The decline in Sparkling category sales was partially due to softness in the Coca-Cola Original Taste brand, although other core products showed solid growth [6][9]. - Excluding Dasani, net sales in the Still category increased by 1.8%, driven by growth in sports drinks and enhanced water products [6]. Operating Expenses - Selling, delivery, and administrative (SD&A) expenses increased by 2.9% to 437.3 million, with SD&A as a percentage of net sales rising to 27.7% [9][10]. - The increase in SD&A expenses was primarily due to higher labor costs and inflationary pressures [9]. Cash Flow and Investments - Cash flows from operations for Q1 2025 were 198.2 million, compared to 98 million in capital expenditures during the quarter, with expectations of around $300 million for the fiscal year 2025 [12].