Bud Light continues to struggle in the aftermath of the Dylan Mulvaney controversy, as Anheuser-Busch InBev stock is down 17% since its May 4 earnings announcement. There have been slight improvements in recent weeks to make forecasters expect the company is pulling out of its slide. In the week ending May 27, Anheuser-Busch InBev said Bud Light sales dropped 23.9% YoY, which was actually a smaller decline than the week prior, a 25.7% decline from the previous year. - Volumes are also improved, as they were down only 27.8% last week compared to 29.5% the week prior.
- This is also affecting the other drinks in the company's portfolio, as Budweiser sales were down 8.5% YoY for the week of May 27. Michelob Ultra sales dropped 0.1% in that time frame, and Busch Light declined 3.0%. But these were all better than the week before for all brands.
- If these weaker trends continue, it "begs the question of whether Anheuser-Busch InBev and/or its distributors will have to make structural changes to reduce their cost basis if trends don't improve over the next few months," said Evercore's Robert Ottenstein.
During a March Madness campaign, Mulvaney, a transgender influencer and TikTok star, made a post on Instagram endorsing the beer. Singer Kid Rock posted a video in April condemning Bud Light for collaborating with a transgender personality, and a widespread boycott across the U.S. ensued. - During the earnings call, Anheuser-Busch InBev CEO Michael Dimitrios Doukeris downplayed the controversy, which angered LGBTQ allies, causing multiple sides to be angry at the company.
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