Ambev (NYSE:ABEV) executives said the company closed 2025 with improved profitability and a stronger strategic position despite an environment that pressured volumes, particularly in Brazil. Speaking on the company’s fourth-quarter and full-year results call, CEO Carlos Lisboa described 2025 as a “stress test” that challenged the beer industry with unfavorable weather and fewer consumption occasions, but said the company maintained execution consistency and carried momentum into 2026.
Management frames 2025 as a tough volume year, but strengthening fundamentals
Lisboa said Ambev prioritized avoiding disruption inside the organization while advancing its three strategic pillars: leading category growth, using data and technology to strengthen the core business and build new growth engines, and improving efficiency to scale the first two pillars. While volumes were “pressured by the environment,” he said the company ended the year with a strengthened portfolio, closer customer and consumer relationships, and improved profitability.
Digital ecosystem updates: BEES and Zé Delivery
Lisboa highlighted continued progress on the company’s digital initiatives, positioning them as enablers for improved execution and a faster “test and learn” innovation cycle.
- BEES Marketplace: Full-year gross merchandise value (GMV) grew 70%, driven by third-party expansion, while gross margin rose 3.5 percentage points versus the prior year, according to management.
- Zé Delivery: The platform delivered BRL 4.7 billion in GMV in 2025, up 13% year-over-year, with 67 million orders and 27 million yearly active users, up 11%. Lisboa said nearly 80% of buyers were Gen Z or millennials, reinforcing Zé Delivery’s role in connecting with younger adult consumers.
Profitability and shareholder returns
CFO Guilherme Fleury said Ambev delivered normalized EBITDA growth with margin expansion, EPS growth, and resilient cash generation in 2025 while returning more capital to shareholders. On an organic basis, consolidated normalized EBITDA margin expanded 50 basis points to 33.4%, which management attributed to net revenue per hectoliter growth of 7.5%, productivity and operational efficiencies, and disciplined SG&A control while maintaining brand investment.
Fleury pointed to Brazil Beer as an example of cost discipline. He said Brazil Beer cash COGS per hectoliter (excluding non-Ambev marketplace products) increased 6.1% in 2025, landing in the “lowest quartile” of the company’s prior guidance range of 5.5% to 8.5%, despite commodity headwinds and the impact of lower volumes on operating leverage.
Below EBITDA, Fleury said the company recorded nearly BRL 4 billion in net financial expenses, mainly due to FX variation losses linked to foreign currency-denominated assets and BRL appreciation, along with costs related to sourcing U.S. dollars in Bolivia. Ambev’s effective tax rate was 17.7% in 2025, reflecting one-off items including the Barbados divestment and certain tax-related effects; excluding those items, Fleury said the effective tax rate would have been about 20%.
Ambev reported stated net income of almost BRL 16 billion. Stated EPS rose 8.2% year-over-year, while normalized EPS increased 2%, Fleury said.
On capital returns, Lisboa said the company announced approximately BRL 20 billion in shareholder returns in 2025—its “highest in our history”—including BRL 13.2 billion in dividends, BRL 4.2 billion in interest on capital, and a new BRL 2.5 billion share buyback program. Fleury added that Ambev returned BRL 21.7 billion to shareholders on a cash basis, representing about 90% of operating cash flow.
Business unit commentary: Brazil Beer, Brazil NAB, and other markets
In Brazil Beer, Lisboa said full-year volumes tracked a “soft industry” and reflected two different halves. Revenue management initiatives weighed on share in the first half, but as conditions improved, the company regained momentum, with market share expanding in the fourth quarter. He said October represented the “main drag,” volumes improved in November, and the company “returned to growth in December.” For the quarter, Ambev reported a low single-digit market share gain in Nielsen sell-out data.
Lisboa said the company led the category’s growth areas. Premium and super premium volumes increased “high teens,” balanced choices brands grew “high 60s,” and non-alcohol beer grew around 30%. He added that, based on company estimates and Nielsen data, Ambev delivered 100% of Brazil’s beer industry growth in premium and non-alcohol in the quarter. Core segment softness was more pronounced due to greater exposure to out-of-home occasions, but Lisboa said the company saw progress in the fourth quarter through trade activation, marketing campaigns, and innovation.
In Brazil non-alcoholic beverages (NAB), Lisboa said disciplined execution and resource allocation supported EBITDA growth with margin expansion, while Guaraná Antarctica’s brand equity improved. He said the first half featured market share gains but margin pressure from higher costs; in the second half, the carbonated soft drinks industry decelerated and price relativity became less favorable following revenue management decisions, contributing to market share pressure while delivering a “better profitability profile.”
Across other markets, Lisboa said macro conditions improved in Argentina with lower inflation and reduced FX volatility, but consumption recovery took longer than expected and weighed on 2025 results. He said performance improved sequentially through the year, supported by tighter execution and revenue management, and management remained constructive on a gradual recovery. In the Dominican Republic, he said the consumption environment improved sequentially despite a weather disruption in the fourth quarter, beer gained share of alcoholic beverages for the full year, and Presidente’s brand health reached all-time highs. In Canada, Lisboa said Ambev outperformed both beer and beyond beer industries, supported by its mega brands and continued beyond beer momentum, while delivering EBITDA margin expansion.
Outlook themes: 2026 occasions, costs, and pricing balance
Looking ahead, Lisboa said 2026 is shaping up to be a “promising year for socialization,” citing Carnival, a holiday-rich calendar in Brazil, and the FIFA World Cup as tailwinds for consumption occasions. Fleury reiterated Ambev’s capital allocation priorities for 2026: reinvesting in organic growth, maintaining discipline on M&A, and returning excess cash to shareholders over time.
On costs, Fleury guided that Brazil Beer cash COGS per hectoliter (excluding non-Ambev marketplace products) is expected to increase 4.5% to 7.5% in 2026, driven primarily by commodity prices—“aluminum in particular”—and portfolio mix, with higher pressure anticipated in the first half.
During Q&A, Lisboa said the company had not observed a “meaningful impact” from GLP-1 drugs on its business, while noting the company would continue monitoring the trend. On pricing strategy, he described the need to balance affordability—particularly in the core segment and via packaging assortment—with protecting profitability, adding that Ambev’s broader portfolio and digital tools are improving the granularity and effectiveness of its revenue management execution.
Fleury also noted a team change in investor relations: Patrick Conrad will join the IR team, succeeding Guilherme Yokaichiya, who will move to lead Ambev’s treasury function.
About Ambev (NYSE:ABEV)
Ambev (NYSE: ABEV) is a Brazilian-based beverage company that produces, distributes and markets a broad portfolio of alcoholic and non-alcoholic drinks. The company’s core business centers on brewing and selling beer, alongside a range of soft drinks, bottled water, energy drinks and other malt-based beverages. Headquartered in São Paulo, Ambev operates an integrated value chain that covers manufacturing, packaging, logistics and commercial sales to retail, on-premise and institutional customers.
The company traces its origins to the 1999 merger of two historic Brazilian breweries, and later became part of the broader global brewing group through subsequent industry consolidations.
