AB InBev reported record revenue for 2024 despite a decline in beer sales, attributing its growth to strategic pricing and premiumization. The Leuven/Belgium-based company announced that total beverage sales fell by 1.4% to 575.7 million hectolitres, with its own beer brands experiencing a 2% decline to 495.5 million hectolitres. The decrease was primarily driven by weaker consumer demand in China and Argentina. However, excluding these markets, the company recorded a 0.9% increase in volume sales.
Despite this downturn, AB InBev achieved a 2.7% increase in total revenue, reaching an all-time high of 59.8 billion USD (57 billion EUR). This growth was driven by a 4.3% rise in revenue per hectolitre, reflecting disciplined pricing strategies and the premiumization of its portfolio. The company's normalized EBITDA rose by 8.2% to 20.9 billion USD, with EBITDA margin expansion of 179 basis points to 35.1%. Underlying profit attributable to shareholders increased by 14.7% to 7.06 billion USD.
The board of directors has proposed a dividend of 1 EUR per share, representing a 22% increase from the previous year, subject to shareholder approval at the annual general meeting on April 30, 2025. Additionally, AB InBev has made progress in its 2 billion USD share buyback program, completing 750 million USD as of February 21, 2025.
Looking ahead, AB InBev expects its EBITDA to grow between 4% and 8% in 2025. The company continues to focus on digital transformation, with 75% of its revenue now transacted through its B2B digital platform, BEES. The platform which is live is 28 markets, saw its gross merchandise value of third-party product grow by 57% in 2024, reaching 2.5 billion USD.
Sustainability remains a priority, with the brewer contracting 100% of its global purchased electricity from renewable sources and reducing its absolute greenhouse gas emissions across Scopes 1 and 2 by 42% since 2017. Additionally, the company reported a significant increase in no-alcohol beer sales, with Corona Cero experiencing triple-digit volume growth.
In 2024, AB InBev saw mixed performance across key markets. The United States experienced a revenue decline of 2.0%, but market share gains were led by Michelob Ultra and Busch Light, alongside strong no-alcohol and beyond beer growth.
Mexico achieved record volumes with steady growth in Corona and no-alcohol beer, while Colombia delivered double-digit revenue and EBITDA growth, driven by premium brands like Stella Artois. Brazil outperformed the industry despite weather-related volume declines, with Budweiser and Corona driving premiumization.
In Europe, market share gains and a resilient beer category contributed to revenue growth and margin recovery. South Africa rebounded strongly with double-digit volume growth, particularly in premium and beyond beer.
However, China faced a significant volume drop of 11.8% due to a weak on-premise market, while Argentina struggled with inflation-driven declines.
Elsewhere, Canada, Peru, and Ecuador showed mixed results, while Nigeria and other African markets posted strong growth in a high-inflation environment. South Korea recorded its highest market share in a decade, fueled by premiumization and innovation.
