National Beverage Corp. recently released its 10-Q report. The company develops, produces, markets and sells sparkling waters, juices, energy drinks and carbonated soft drinks in the United States and Canada, with brands including LaCroix, Clear Fruit, Rip It, Everfresh, Mr. Pure, Shasta and Faygo. It serves national retailers and smaller accounts through warehouse and direct-store delivery channels and is headquartered in Fort Lauderdale, Florida.
For the first quarter of fiscal 2027, ended Aug. 1, 2026, National Beverage posted net sales of $330.7 million, essentially unchanged from $330.5 million a year earlier. The company said a 7.1% increase in average selling price per case was offset by a 6.4% decline in case volume, with both Power+ Brands and carbonated soft drinks affected.
Gross profit fell to $115.8 million from $125.5 million, and gross margin narrowed to 35.0% from 38.0%. National Beverage said the decline was driven mainly by higher packaging and ingredient costs and lower volume, while cost of sales per case rose 12.4%; aluminum costs alone cut gross margin by about 600 basis points.
Selling, general and administrative expenses increased to $57.3 million from $54.7 million, reflecting higher shipping costs, mainly from fuel, and higher marketing spending. As a share of sales, SG&A rose to 17.3% from 16.5%.
Other income included $3.3 million of interest income, up from $2.2 million a year earlier, largely because of higher average invested balances. The effective tax rate was 23.8%, compared with 23.6% in the prior-year quarter.
Operating cash flow improved to $64.9 million from $59.1 million. The company said the increase was driven mainly by a net decrease in working capital, excluding cash, partly offset by lower net income.
Cash used in investing activities was $3.1 million, matching the prior-year quarter, as the company continued packaging and efficiency improvement projects at its production facilities. It said fiscal 2027 capital expenditures are expected to be comparable to fiscal 2026.
Cash used in financing activities reflected a special dividend of $304.2 million paid on July 30, 2026. As a result, cash and cash equivalents fell by $242.4 million during the quarter, compared with an increase of $56.0 million in the prior-year period.
At Aug. 1, 2026, working capital was $190.6 million, down from $457.8 million at May 2, 2026, and the current ratio fell to 2.4 to 1 from 4.4 to 1. The company said the change was primarily due to the dividend payment. Trade receivables increased $1.5 million, days sales outstanding improved to 29.1 days from 31.9 days, inventories rose $4.9 million, and inventory turns declined to 7.7 times from 8.2 times.
National Beverage said it had $150 million of unsecured revolving credit and loan facilities available, with no borrowings outstanding and $2.7 million reserved for standby letters of credit. Today the company's shares have moved 1.58% to a price of $31.40. If you want to know more, read the company's complete 10-Q report here.
