The recent ill-fated advertisement campaign between Bud Light and transgender activist Dylan Mulvaney took a massive toll on the share price of Anheuser-Busch InBev. The occurrence dropped the stock around nine percent in just 6 months, followed by another three percent drop within five days.
But one investor was smart enough to look further into the future of the beer company, despite its current status. That investor is none other than the world’s second-richest man, Bill Gates.
Gates, who is second only to Amazon CEO Jeff Bezos, recently bought 1.7 million shares of Anheuser-Busch Inbev through the Bill and Melinda Gates Foundation. Gates’ acquisition of 1.7 million shares reveals that he sees the beer giant making a comeback with consumers following its ill-fated advertisement campaign.
Gates’ decision to invest in the beer company is further validated by Morgan Stanley analyst Sarah Simon. She states that the beer giant’s growth in emerging markets like in the Asia Pacific region limits the impact of the U.S. share loss.
“After one-off costs in 2023, we see profitability growth resuming in 2024, with strong cash flow growth driving leverage to the target 2.0x, allowing for both an increase in the payout ratio as well as the resumption of share buybacks from 2026,” Simon told TipRanks. “Current valuation fails to reflect this upside, in our view.”
And despite Bud Light’s current difficulties, it appears that Bill Gates is betting on its continued success.
— Breitbart News (@BreitbartNews) September 6, 2023
The Microsoft co-founder shelled out more than $95 million for the purchase, showing the world that he believes Bud Light will win out in the long run.
The news of Gates’ purchase of Anheuser-Busch Inbev has sent the company’s shares up by a modest 1.6 percent. Although the company’s stock is still significantly down, the purchase is encouraging and Bill Gates’ backing could motivate other investors to make similar moves.
It remains to be seen what the future holds for the beer giant, but for now, it looks like Bill Gates and other investors are staying positive and hoping for the best.