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Big changes afoot for the world's #2 brewer. Heineken will cut 5-6K jobs over the next 2 yrs, reducing its ~87K-person global workforce by as much as 7% as it aims to accelerate productivity initiatives, co announced in its full-year earnings report Wed. That's on top of 8K headcount reduction in 2021 when Heineken's EverGreen initiative was first unveiled. Moves sweeping in scope for supplier operating in 70+ countries. Co didn't comment on how they might affect HUSA, which remained challenged last yr with net revs down "a high-single-digit" and volume down "low teens." Global volume also dropped 2%, tho net revs and oper profit both grew for the yr (see below). Latest cuts are part of evolved EverGreen 2030 plan unveiled at its Capital Markets Day late last yr. It aims for another &euro;400-500 mil ($474-593 mil) in annual gross savings on top of &euro;3.5 bil ($4.15 bil) over the last 5 yrs. "Sharpened" strategy was spearheaded by ceo Dolf van den Brink. Tho after nearly 6 yrs at the helm, Dolf will "step down" as Heineken ceo on May 31, 2026, co announced last mo. Heineken didn't name a successor for the 52-yr-old exec whose tenure spanned a turbulent stretch. But its board initiated a search.Accelerated Growth #1 Goal; 3x Innovation in Priority Segments Reasons for Dolf's departure remain unclear. Something clearly changed in just the last year-plus after Heineken supervisory board voted to reappoint Dolf as chairman for another 4-yr term starting Jun 2024. But "there is very explicit alignment&hellip; that EverGreen 2030 is our strategy" now and into "the foreseeable future," Dolf said on earnings call. So his replacement will have a path laid out for them, albeit within a challenging macro landscape while battling a delevered ABI. Dolf's "proud" to have picked up "pace of change" at Heineken as the world accelerated around it, he reflected. But "more is needed" as co puts plan into action and seeks stepped up growth as its number 1 priority. It aims to do so via increased investment and faster innovation, including 3x as many launches and pilots across priority segments.Cuts "Partly" Due to AI How will Heineken's "simpler, leaner" operating model come to life? Aside from reduced headcount, plan calls for "selected brewery closures," exiting mkts where there's "no clear path" to sustainable growth as well as shift to a "single digital infrastructure" and a "smaller, more strategic" head office. Tho co will simultaneously expand global supply networks and its Heineken Business Services unit. Layoffs were "partly also due to AI, or let's say digitization," Dolf told CNBC. "That's a very big part of our EverGreen 2030 strategy, with around 3,000 roles moving to our business services," where AI will be "an important part of ongoing productivity savings." Co's AI-powered mktg platform, "Freddyai," will become "a core enabler of how we work more effectively and efficiently across markets and brands," per release.US "Remains Challenging"; Can MIM's Return Help Turn the Tides? US "remains challenging" and was "further impacted by tariffs introduced in the first half," Dolf noted on call. HUSA lost share in mkt that declined by a "mid-single-digit." But Heineken 0.0 remained a bright spot with depletions up for a 7th straight yr, as US remains one of the brewer's priority growth markets. While seemingly still a ways to go for US growth aspirations, co recently launched new campaigns for each of its top 2 US brands with aim to ignite better trends. Dos Equis revived its iconic Most Interesting Man campaign last mo, backed by a 20% to 25% increase in brand mktg investment and natl media all yr long. And brand Heineken launched its new "Fans Have More Friends" platform in the US, followed by 50 more mkts globally.Heineken brand fam (ex 0.0) fell 12% by volume and Dos Equis dropped ~7% in 2025 Circana multi-outlet + convenience scans. Still the 11th and 20th largest brands in these scans. Total Heineken volume slipped 8.3%, $$ down 9.4% as avg price for both Dos Equis and Heineken 0.0 fell last yr. Signs of improvement to start 2026 as Dos brand fam volume grew 3.2% and total Heineken USA down just 3% in YTD 2026 scans thru Jan 25. Tho Heineken brand fam volume still down 8.4% amid better trends for total beer.Global Volume Declined but Net Revs +1.6%; Oper Profit +4.4%; Slightly Reduced 2026 Guidance Heineken's 2025 volume outpaced ABI slightly but trailed on other metrics, in what Dolf termed a "resilient and well-balanced performance." Consolidated global volume fell 2.1% to about 223 mil bbls. Tho with separately counted licensed volume up 17.8% to ~13.3 mil bbls, total volume down just 1.2%. Net revs (beia) grew 1.6% organically to &euro;28.9 bil ($34.4 bil). Net rev per hectoliter was up 3.8%. And oper profit (beia) jumped 4.4% to &euro;4.4 bil ($5.2 bil) as margin expanded 41 bps to 15.2%.Total co held or grew share in over 60% of its mkts and 80%+ of priority growth mkts, according to Heineken. Flagship Heineken volume grew 2.7% globally with Heineken 0.0 up just 0.2%. Co guided to oper profit growth of 2-6% in 2026, slightly below +4-8% range yr ago. Tho that's before accounting for acquisition of FIFCO's Central America biz, which closed last month and was Heineken's largest deal "in more than a decade," expected to be 2%-3% accretive to EPS.Organic Vols Still 6% Below 2019; "High-Performance Car" in "Semi-Permanent" Spin, Sez Trevor Heineken stock popped ~4% in European trading on day it reported earnings. Yet "for the last few years, Heineken has been like a high performance car in a semi-permanent wheel spin, failing to get traction and achieve its true potential," Bernstein's Trevor Stirling wrote in a report published yesterday. Organic volumes are still 6% below 2019, he highlighted, with margins still 30 bps below that year's benchmark. (Trevor separately estimates that USA accounts for ~7% of Heineken's EBIT.) "After all the false starts of the last few years," Trevor believes 2026 should be "a year of improved traction, albeit likely weighted to H2." But going forward, the question remains: "will the wheels grip, or continue to spin?"

Heineken to Cut 5-6K Global Jobs; HUSA Vol Down Double Digits; Dolf to Depart, MIM Back

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