AB InBev beats fourth-quarter, full-year expectations
By Josh White
Date: Thursday 12 Feb 2026
(Sharecast News) - Anheuser-Busch InBev reported fourth-quarter and full-year results that topped expectations on Thursday, as growth in Latin America and emerging markets helped offset weaker volumes in western markets and China.
Group revenue rose 2.5% in the fourth quarter, with revenue per hectolitre up 4%, while reported revenue increased 4.8% to $15.6bn.
For the full year, revenue grew 2% on an organic basis, with revenue per hectolitre up 4.4%, although reported revenue fell 0.8% to $59.3bn due to adverse currency movements.
Volumes declined 1.5% in the fourth quarter, with beer volumes down 1.9% and non-beer volumes up 0.6%, a smaller drop than analysts had expected.
For 2025 as a whole, volumes fell 2.3%, including a 2.6% decline in beer and a 0.4% decrease in non-beer.
The company said it delivered record-high beer volumes in Colombia and double-digit premium beer volume growth for Corona in 30 markets, while Brazil returned to growth in December as weather conditions normalised.
Normalized EBITDA rose 2.3% to $5.47bn in the fourth quarter, ahead of consensus forecasts, though margins contracted 10 basis points to 35.2%.
Full-year normalised EBITDA increased 4.9% to $21.2bn, with margin expanding 101 basis points to 35.8%, at the lower end of the company's 4% to 8% medium-term growth range.
Underlying earnings per share increased 7.5% to $0.95 in the quarter and 6.0% to $3.73 for the year, or 9.4% on a constant currency basis.
Free cash flow totalled $11.3bn.
Reported profit attributable to equity holders rose to $1.96bn in the fourth quarter from $1.22bn a year earlier, while full-year reported profit increased to $6.84bn from $5.86bn.
Net debt-to-normalised EBITDA improved slightly to 2.87x at year-end from 2.89x a year earlier.
"We exit 2025 with improved momentum and enter 2026 well positioned," said chief executive Michel Doukeris, as the brewer maintained its outlook for EBITDA growth of between 4% and 8% in 2026.
The firm said it expected net capital expenditure of $3.5bn to $4bn this year and a normalized effective tax rate of 26% to 28%.
AB InBev said it invested $7.4bn in sales and marketing in 2025 and gained or maintained market share in two-thirds of its markets.
Its non-alcoholic beer portfolio grew revenue by 34%, while Beyond Beer revenue rose 23%, led by Cutwater in the United States.
The group said it planned to benefit from major events in 2026 including the soccer World Cup in North America and the Winter Olympics.
The board proposed a final dividend of €1.00 per share, bringing the full-year dividend to €1.15 including the interim payment, up 15% on 2024.
As of 9 February, the brewer had completed about $635m of its $6bn share buyback programme announced in October.
At 1122 CET (1022 GMT), shares in AB InBev were up 2.84% in Brussels at €66.70.
Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.
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