Boston Beer's Earnings Aren't As Good as You Think

What the heck is the market thinking? After Boston Beer (NYSE: SAM) reported earnings last week, investors pushed the craft brewer's stock some 20% higher. While there were signs a few things had improved, this financial report was no cause for raising a frothy mug to cheer the results. Quite likely, the gains will eventually taste as sour as skunked beer.

Sure, there were positive developments. Depletions that had been down 14% in the first quarter were down only 3% in the second (depletions are sales to distributors and retailers, and are considered an industry proxy for demand). And while it sold 1,000 fewer barrels this year than it did in the same period in 2016, it shipped 372,000 more barrels of beer during the second quarter than it did in the first.

Image source: Boston Beer.

Source: Fool.com