Coffee manufacturer
Green Mountain Coffee Roasters Inc.
(
GMCR
) is relocating its Massachusetts-based Keurig business unit to
Burlington, Mass.
The company is relocating the business to Burlington, Mass,
which is of a larger capacity than the Massachusetts facilities and
would expectedly help the company in its innovation efforts.
The company will shift its business to Burlington from the three
existing Massachusetts facilities at Reading, Wakefield and Woburn,
in phases over the next several years.
The Keurig business unit of Green Mountain is a pioneer and
leading manufacturer of gourmet single-cup brewing systems. It
sells beverages produced by other business units of the company
through At Home and Away From Home channels.
Green Mountain Coffee is geared up to make the single-cup
brewing system popular in America and has entered into several
strategic distribution agreements to rope in more and more popular
brands like Dunkin Donuts and Starbucks into its portion pack
systems. Through these agreements, Green Mountain is aligning with
the strongest coffee brands to support a range of consumer choices
and taste profiles in Keurig Single-Cup Brewing system.
Recently, in May 2012, the company bagged a multi-year agreement
with Eight O'Clock Coffee Company, by virtue of which the brands
Eight O' Clock coffee, Tetley tea, and Good Earth tea will be
available in K-Cup and Vue packs for Keurig Single-Cup Brewing
systems.
Our Recommendation
Green Mountain, unlike its other coffee producing peers, has
diversified its business and is a complete unit of coffee making as
well as brewing.
However, Green Mountain's revenue is highly dependant on its
Keurig business. The main patents on the K-Cup will end in
September 2012. Well known brands and close competitors like
Starbucks Corporation
(
SBUX
) and Caribou Coffee Roasters will have other alternatives, which
will hurt Green Mountain's fundamentals.
Currently, Green Mountain carries a Zacks #4 Rank (short-term
Sell rating).
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