Nov. 6--Hansen Natural Corp. on Thursday continued to display its ability to ride out rough economic times by posting solid third-quarter earnings, although they did fall slightly short of analysts' predictions.

The Corona-based beverage maker reported a profit of $56.5 million for the third quarter, equating to 60 cents per share and up 7.8 percent from the $52.4 million, or 54 cents per share, in the same three months of 2008.

Analysts had predicted a profit of 63 cents a share, and Hansen's stock, which is traded on the Nasdaq Stock Exchange, was down by as much as 9 percent in after-hours trading. Increased promotions, including product exposure at events that included concerts and sports events, were a prominent expenditure.

Sales increased 9 percent in the quarter to $355 million. Hansen's line of energy drinks is still growing faster than the category as a whole and at the expense of some of the lesser competitors in the field, according to industry surveys conducted mostly in September by Nielsen Media Research.

"We are encouraged by the positive sales numbers reported by Nielsen for the five weeks ended September 26," Rodney Sacks, Hansen's chairman and chief executive officer, said in a statement.

Sacks told a conference call of analysts Thursday that Hansen's Monster Energy drinks and industry leader Red Bull picked up market share during the September study, with Monster slightly narrowing the gap with Red Bull. Market share for most of the other brands, continues to slide.

One of the few effects of the weak economy has shown up in softer sales of Monster's 24-ounce containers, which cost more than $3 and may be a problem with people who are out of work or underpaid.

"Generally we continue to see Monster in 16-ounce cans have positive numbers," Sacks told analysts.

The third-quarter report coincided with the first anniversary of Hansen's distribution deal with Coca-Cola, and Sacks said that between that deal and Hansen's deal with Anheuser-Busch, Hansen is with "the two best beverage systems in the United States."

Stanley Makadok, president of Century Management Consultants, a beverage industry analyst, said soft drinks are not considered a luxury even in a recession, and energy drinks are still basically a low-unit item.

"And, if the drink has a functional value, so much the better," Makadok said.

Stifel Nicolaus analyst Mark Astrachan wrote in a recent research report that he is increasing its 2010 earnings estimate from $2.34 per share to $2.45 per share. Astrachan noted the solid performances by Hansen's products, along with its international growth.

Products are being launched in Australia and Brazil in the fourth quarter, Sacks said.

Reach Jack Katzanek at 951 368-9553 or at jkatzanek@PE.com

-----

To see more of The Press-Enterprise or to subscribe to the newspaper, go to http://www.pe.com.

Copyright (c) 2009, The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, Calif.

Distributed by McClatchy-Tribune Information Services.

For reprints, email tmsreprints@permissionsgroup.com, call 800-374-7985 or 847-635-6550, send a fax to 847-635-6968, or write to The Permissions Group Inc., 1247 Milwaukee Ave., Suite 303, Glenview, IL 60025, USA.

NASDAQ-NMS:HANS, NYSE:BUD,

A service of YellowBrix, Inc.