If you thought that Super Bowl advertising might be muted this year, you had good reason. A souring macroeconomic environment suggests that advertisers might pull in their claws a bit and save some cash. However, the latest word says there’s little cause for alarm. Super Bowl airtime was almost completely sold out back in September, and the usual suspects were all on hand with their checkbooks out.
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Anheuser-Busch InBev (NYSE:BUD) picked up three minutes during the big game, according to its Chief Marketing Officer Benoit Garbe. That’s an average of 3.5 times more than its competitors will spend. With 30-second ad spots going for $7 million each, it’s a pretty big spend, no matter how you cut it. Anheiser-Busch will be focusing on traditional beers this year, including Bud Light and Michelob Ultra, as opposed to seltzers or craft beers.
However, BUD won’t be the only one spending. Heineken (OTCMKTS:HEINY) also has a slot reserved but will advertise a non-alcoholic beer. Diageo (NYSE:DEO) plans to advertise Crown Royal whisky, and those three are just for starters. A recent Gartner report noted that the Super Bowl is fairly resistant to macroeconomic troubles thanks to its status as a singular event. But the Gartner study also noted a point that we’re already seeing: advertising will get back to basics and focus on clear value.
All three of the beverage brands listed are up in today’s trading, though to different extents. Analysts call Anheuser-Busch a Hold and Diageo stock a Moderate Buy. Anheuser-Busch’s average price target of $61.75 gives its stock just 3.49% upside potential. Meanwhile, Diageo stock’s average price target of $196 implies 5.66% upside potential.
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