Compania Cervecerias Unidas S.A. (NYSE: CCU) reported second quarter EBITDA of CLP 31,591 million against CLP 19,817 million a year earlier, a 59.4% increase, while booking a net loss of CLP 20,712 million against a loss of CLP 11,218 million. The results, for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, were released in Santiago on August 4, 2026 and furnished to the United States Securities and Exchange Commission on Form 6-K. The company is incorporated in the Republic of Chile with principal offices at Vitacura 2670, 23rd floor, Santiago.

Consolidated volumes fell 1.5% to 7,059 thousand hectolitres from 7,165 thousand. Net sales rose 4.8% to CLP 607,801 million from CLP 579,914 million, which the company attributes almost entirely to a 6.4% increase in average prices in Chilean pesos. Gross profit rose 6.8% to CLP 252,830 million, with gross margin up 76 basis points, and the operating result improved to a loss of CLP 9,447 million from a loss of CLP 17,340 million.

Chile carried the quarter, wine subtracted from it

The Chile segment grew volumes 2.5% and top line 1.5%, with average prices in pesos down 1.0% on portfolio mix. Gross profit rose 9.4% and gross margin expanded 328 basis points, helped by the 5.0% appreciation of the peso against the dollar on dollar denominated costs and by lower sugar, PET and fruit pulp prices, partly offset by higher aluminium prices. Segment EBITDA reached CLP 53,401 million, up 26.2%, with margin up 264 basis points to 13.5%. Non-alcoholic categories grew mid single digits against low single digit declines in beer and spirits, and flavoured low alcohol ready to drink products reached 8.3% of total alcohol volume in the segment as of June 2026.

The International Business segment lifted net sales 15.7% on 24.9% higher average prices in pesos while volumes fell 7.4%, with Argentina contracting in beer and water and Bolivian operations disrupted by social unrest and roadblocks. Gross profit rose 20.8% and the segment narrowed its EBITDA loss to CLP 19,953 million from CLP 26,892 million, a 25.8% improvement, after restructuring expenses of CLP 1,408 million in Argentina.

Wine went the other way. Segment revenue fell 14.1% on a 13.7% volume decline, with Chilean domestic volumes down 10.4% and exports down 21.2%. Cost of sales per hectolitre in the segment rose 8.4% on a higher cost of wine, gross profit fell 26.9% and gross margin contracted 560 basis points. Segment EBITDA fell 61.9% to CLP 4,298 million, after restructuring expenses of CLP 1,633 million.

Why a better operating quarter produced a worse bottom line

The non-operating result deteriorated to a loss of CLP 33,433 million from CLP 30,261 million. Four movements explain it. Results as per adjustment units carried a further loss of CLP 4,971 million as higher inflation fed into inflation linked liabilities. Other gains and losses worsened by CLP 1,476 million, which includes a non-recurrent negative effect of CLP 6,068 million from an impairment loss related to Bolivia, partly offset by gains on forward contracts held against foreign currency balance positions. Net financial expenses rose by CLP 1,322 million as lower interest rates and lower cash balances reduced financial income. Offsetting those, the equity result of joint ventures and associates improved by CLP 2,954 million on a better financial result in Colombia, and foreign currency exchange differences added CLP 1,643 million.

The tax line did the rest. Income taxes produced a gain of CLP 22,399 million against a gain of CLP 36,388 million a year earlier, the smaller credit reflecting a smaller pre-tax loss and the absence of a non-recurring positive tax effect recorded in Argentina in the second quarter of 2025. Earnings per share came to a loss of CLP 56.1 against a loss of CLP 30.4.

Analysis: the loss is a comparison problem, not an operating one

Read the quarter in the order the income statement builds. Volumes fell, prices rose more, and cost of sales per hectolitre rose 5.0% while marketing, selling, distribution and administrative expenses grew 3.3% and fell 62 basis points as a share of net sales. That sequence produced a 45.5% smaller operating loss and a 178 basis point margin gain. Everything that made the net loss larger sits below EBIT, and two of the three items, the Bolivian impairment and the year ago Argentine tax credit, are described by the company as non-recurrent.

The half year figures make the seasonal shape plain. For the six months, net sales reached CLP 1,427,317 million against CLP 1,397,584 million, up 2.1%, EBITDA reached CLP 163,234 million against CLP 151,371 million, up 7.8%, and net income was positive at CLP 33,143 million, down 28.8% from CLP 46,560 million. Half year EBITDA margin of 11.4% against 10.8% sits far above the 5.2% recorded in the quarter. A second quarter loss at a Southern Hemisphere beverages group is a statement about the calendar as much as about performance, and the 59.4% EBITDA jump is measured off a low base of CLP 19,817 million.

What the release does not settle is the direction of the wine business or the extent of any further Bolivian exposure. Wine EBITDA of CLP 4,298 million after a 61.9% fall, on volumes down 13.7% in a contracting export and domestic market, is now a small contributor to a group that reported CLP 31,591 million of consolidated EBITDA. The impairment of CLP 6,068 million is disclosed by reference to the goodwill note in the consolidated financial statements as of June 30, 2026, and the company gives no view on further exposure. A reader would also watch the Chilean price line: average prices in the segment fell 1.0% while volumes rose 2.5%, so the margin gain there came from cost and currency rather than from pricing power.

New ownership in water, and a new chief executive

CCU told the Comision para el Mercado Financiero on June 5, 2026, under Article 9 and the second paragraph of Article 10 of Law No. 18,045 and General Rule No. 30, that it had signed a share purchase agreement with Nestle Chile S.A. and acquired the 49.9% interest Nestle held in Aguas CCU-Nestle Chile S.A. CCU already held the remaining 50.1% through Embotelladoras Chilenas Unidas S.A. and now owns 100% of the subsidiary. The agreement set an enterprise value for 100% of approximately CLP 322,377 million on a cash free and debt free basis, giving a purchase price at closing of approximately CLP 164,597 million, subject to customary adjustments. CCU said the definitive financial effects could not yet be determined. The distribution relationship with Nestle for ready to drink coffee based beverages and water brands in Chile continues.

The quarter was also the first reported by a new chief executive, who has worked at the company for more than 20 years and set out a four pillar strategy: greater focus on the business, stronger operating efficiencies across segments, faster decision making and accelerated transformation. Organisational changes will be phased through the year with operational continuity as the stated priority.

CCU is registered with the Comision para el Mercado Financiero under RUT 90413000-1, with its domicile recorded as Avenida Vitacura 2670, Piso 23, and its registration is current.