Caribou Blames Green Mountain for Lowered Guidance

Rarely do you see one company blaming another for an earnings miss or lower guidance, but that’s exactly what Caribou Coffee did today — blaming partner Green Mountain Coffee Roasters for its woes.

Herb Swanson | Bloomberg | Getty Images

Green Mountain Coffee

After reporting second-quarter sales that missed revenue estimates, and lowering its full-year revenue and earnings forecast, the company revised 2012 revenue to be flat from its quarter-ago prediction of a 6 percent to 8 percent. And Caribou now expects earnings per share of 43 cents to 46 cents, 4 cents below earlier guidance.

Caribou CEO Michael Tattersfield was quoted in the company’s earnings release as saying that its results were adversely impacted by “a lower contribution from the Keurig single-serve platform.”

And as for guidance, the company specifically said that the change in its outlook “is primarily attributable to the expectation of lower sales related to its Green Mountain relationship, which is driven by continued channel shifting, the short-term impact of new price tiers in the category, as well as the loss of a significant account in the club business. While these factors have created shifts to the near term, Caribou remains confident in its long-term growth prospects in the single-serve marketplace."

Or so it hopes.

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