Heineken Posts Drop In Q3 Profit

Heineken NV (OTC: HEINY) reported a 4.8% drop in its third quarter profit.Heineken's quarterly net profit slipped to EUR460 million ($585 million), from a year-ago profit of EUR483 million.Its revenue dropped 1.5% to EUR5.1 billion versus EUR5.18 billion, while revenue on a like-for-like basis rose 0.2% in the quarter. Analysts were expecting sales of 5.32 billion euro in the quarter.Revenues in Western Europe dropped 4.1%, while revenue in Eastern Europe slipped 8.5%. Revenue in the Americas gained 2%, while revenue in Africa rose 3.6%. Revenue in Asia also surged 10%Group beer volume rose by 0.1% organically, while consolidated beer volume declined 0.2% organically in the quarter.The company also reiterated its full-year guidance.Jean-François van Boxmeer, Chairman of the Executive Board & CEO, said, "Amidst a volatile global environment and poor weather during the high selling season in Europe, we maintained top-line growth. This was led by broad-based growth across our developing markets. Our performance in the first nine months of the year underlines the benefit of sustained investments in long-term brand building, innovation and strengthened sales execution.”Heineken shares gained 2.40% to close at $37.17 yesterday.