Posted on 05/10/2023 12:42:13 PM PDT by Red Badger
The stock of Bud Light parent company Anheuser-Busch has been downgraded by analysts at HSBC who say the brand is in the midst of a “crisis” following the outcry over its ties to transgender social media influencer Dylan Mulvaney.
Carlos Laboy, a managing director at HSBC’s global beverage sector, downgraded the stock of Anheuser-Busch InBev to a hold status — meaning that investors should neither buy or sell shares of the company.
Laboy said that the backlash to the Mulvaney branding partnership is a sign that there are “deeper problems than ABI admits,” according to a note that was first reported by CNBC.
“Is ABI’s leadership getting the brand culture transformation right? It’s mixed,” Laboy wrote in a note that was published on Wednesday.
“At Ambev, we think the answer is ‘yes;’ in the US, we think it’s ‘no’,” Laboy wrote.
“The way this Bud Light crisis came about a month ago, management’s response to it and the loss of unprecedented volume and brand relevance raises many questions.”
“Why did its US leadership underestimate the risk of pushback given the recent experience of other firms?” Laboy wrote.
“Is A-B hiring the best people to grow the brands and gauge risk?”
“If Budweiser and Bud Light are iconic American ideas that have long brought consumers together, why did these marketers fail to invite new consumers without alienating the core base of the firm’s largest brand?” Laboy asked.
(Excerpt) Read more at nypost.com ...
The analysts were very calm—but good to see they noticed this entire mess was a “clue” that senior management of the firm is clueless.
Debt rating agencies are the last to figure it out—by the time they know a company is in trouble the doors are ready to close.
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