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BOSTON BEER co . ⚫ EST D 1984 . Boston Beer Reports First Quarter 2021 Results April 22 , 2021 BOSTON , April 22 , 2021 / PRNewswire / -- The Boston Beer Company , Inc. ( NYSE : SAM ) reported first quarter 2021 net revenue of $ 545.1 million , an increase of $ 214.5 million or 64.9 % from the same period last year , mainly due to an increase in shipments of 60.1 % . Net income for the first quarter was $ 65.6 million , an increase of $ 47.3 million or 259.6 % from the same period last year . Earnings per diluted share were $ 5.26 , an increase of $ 3.77 per diluted share , or 253.0 % from the first quarter of 2020. This increase was primarily due to increased net revenue , partially offset by increases in operating expenses . In the first quarter of 2020 , the Company recorded pre - tax COVID - 19 related reductions in net revenue and increases in costs that totaled $ 10.0 million or $ 0.60 per diluted share . In the first quarter of 2021 and the first quarter of 2020 , the Company recorded a tax benefit of $ 0.69 per diluted share and $ 0.17 per diluted share , respectively , resulting from the Accounting Standard " Employee Share - Based Payment Accounting " ( " ASU 2016-09 " ) . Highlights of this release include : • Depletions increased 48 % from the 13 - week comparable period in the prior year . . Full - year depletion and shipment growth is now estimated at between 40 % and 50 % , an increase from the previously communicated range of between 35 % and 45 % . • First quarter gross margin of 45.8 % was 1.0 percentage point above the 2020 first quarter margin of 44.8 % . Excluding the 2020 impact of COVID - 19 returns and other related direct costs , first quarter 2021 gross margin of 45.8 % was 1.0 percentage point below the COVID adjusted 2020 first quarter margin of 46.8 % . • Advertising , promotional and selling expenses in the first quarter increased $ 43.0 million or 43.9 % . • Based on current spending and investment plans , full - year 2021 Non - GAAP earnings per diluted share1 , which excludes the impact of ASU 2016-09 , is now estimated at between $ 22.00 and $ 26.00 , an increase from the previously communicated range of between $ 20.00 and $ 24.00 . Jim Koch , Chairman and Founder of the Company , commented , " As the world slowly reopens and the COVID - 19 pandemic winds down , our primary focus continues to be on operating our breweries and our business safely and working hard to continue to innovate and meet customer demand . Before I turn to our key first quarter operational achievements , I want to note that , working with the Greg Hill Foundation , our Samuel Adams Restaurant Strong Fund has raised $ 7.5 million thus far to support bar and restaurant workers who are experiencing hardships in the wake of COVID - 19 and is committed to distributing 100 % of its proceeds through grants to bar and restaurant workers across the country . We are thankful to our outstanding coworkers , distributors and retailers for their continued focus and diligence to continue to operate and help grow our business . The Company's depletions increased 48 percent in the first quarter and we achieved double digit volume growth for the twelfth consecutive quarter . Early in 2021 , we launched Truly Iced Tea Hard Seltzer and during the second quarter we plan to launch Truly Punch Hard Seltzer . Both combine refreshing hard seltzer with bold flavors and we believe these new launches continue to demonstrate our innovation leadership within the Hard Seltzer category . We are making steady progress in improving our brand support and messaging for our beer and cider brands to position them for long - term sustainable growth in the face of the difficult on - premise environment . We are optimistic that our on - premise business will significantly improve in 2021 as restrictions are slowly lifted . We are excited about the response to the introduction in early 2021 of several new Samuel Adams beers , including Samuel Adams Wicked Hazy , Samuel Adams Wicked Easy and Samuel Adams Just the Haze , our first non - alcoholic beer , as well as the positive reaction to our Samuel Adams ' Your Cousin from Boston ' advertising campaign . We are confident in our ability to innovate and build strong brands that complement our current portfolio and help support our mission of long - term profitable growth . " Dave Burwick , the Company's President and CEO stated , " We are happy with our strong start to the year and our record first quarter shipment and depletion volumes . First quarter shipments growth was significantly higher than depletions growth as we took active steps to ensure that our distributor inventory levels are adequate to support drinker demand during the peak summer months . Our depletions growth in the first quarter was the result of increases in our Truly Hard Seltzer and Twisted Tea brands , partly offset by decreases in our Samuel Adams , Angry Orchard and Dogfish Head brands . The recently launched Truly Iced Tea Hard Seltzer has accelerated Truly brand growth , which has more than doubled since last year . In the first quarter in measured off - premise channels , the Truly brand outgrew the hard seltzer category by nearly 2X or 50 percentage points , resulting in a share increase of 6.5 percentage points . The Truly brand has now reached a market share of over 28 percent , accounting for approximately 40 percent of all growth cases in the hard seltzer category , which is two times greater than the next largest growth brand . Truly Iced Tea Hard Seltzer has achieved a 4.3 percentage point market share in measured off - premise channels , well ahead of all other new entrants to the entire beer category . We expect the launch of Truly Punch Hard Seltzer during the second quarter to continue this positive momentum . We will invest heavily in the launch of Truly Punch Hard Seltzer and the Truly brand , evolve our brand communications , and further improve our position in the hard seltzer category as more competitors enter . Twisted Tea continues to generate double - digit volume growth rates that are significantly above full year 2020 trends . In the first quarter in measured off - premise channels , case growth in Twisted Tea brand products was almost three times higher than its closest competitor and we believe Twisted Tea is on its way to becoming the number one flavored malt beverage ( FMB ) by year's end . We see significant distribution and volume growth opportunities for our Truly and Twisted Tea brands and are looking to continue to expand distribution of our Dogfish Head brand . Pursuing these opportunities in 2021 remains a top priority . Our Samuel Adams , Angry Orchard and Dogfish Head brands were hit the most by COVID - 19 and the related on - premise closures . We continue to work hard on returning these brands to growth and are optimistic that they will return to growth in 2021. Overall , given the trends for the first three months and our current view of the remainder of the year , we've adjusted our expectations for higher 2021 full - year volume and earnings growth , which is primarily driven by the strong performance of our Truly and Twisted Tea brands . " Mr. Burwick went on to say , " During the quarter , we have taken various steps to ensure we have capacity to support this accelerating growth . We continue to work hard on our comprehensive program to transform our supply chain with the goal of making our integrated supply chain more efficient ,