Grupo Cuervo saw sales grow 0.9% to $590 million (P$10.9b) in its fiscal third quarter ending in September on a like-for-like bases, on volume of 6.3 million 9-liter cases, flat against the prior year. EBITDA jumped by 67% to $190 million (P$3.4b) on a like-for-like basis as margins expanded. The company’s net income spiked 243% to $220 million (P$4.1 billion), aided by currency exchange, as it lowered costs and divested some non-core assets, including its stake in Lalo Tequila (now owned by Tito’s).

In the U.S. and Canada, Cuervo’s third-quarter volume slipped 6.4% to 3.4 million cases, with net sales declining 10.3% at constant currency to $330 million (P$6 billion). The company attributed the U.S. and Canada decrease to “challenges in the ready-to-serve category, as well as retail disruptions in Canada that affected select U.S.-made products,” along with a more competitive operating environment. In the key California market, Cuervo recently transitioned its business to the Breakthru portfolio, having previously been partnered with RNDC.

At the ground level, Cuervo’s higher-priced Tequilas like Gran Centenario, Maestro Dobel, and Gran Coramino have been boosting U.S. volume lately, along with 400 Conejos mezcal, which has rapidly climbed the leaderboard in that segment. “Simply put, 400 Conejos is on fire,” said Proximo Spirits CMO Lander Otegui recently. “Especially when it comes to on-premise, the liquid has quickly become bartenders’ go-to mezcal of choice.”