This Used to Be the World’s Best Soft-Drink Stock. Now It’s the Worst

The onetime top soft-drink stock in the world is now the industry’s worst-performing equity.

Thailand’s Carabao Group Pcl, energy-drink maker and sponsor of a high-profile English soccer competition, has fallen almost 40 percent on a total return basis from a peak in October last year. The drop is the worst globally among soft-drink makers with a minimum $1 billion market capitalization, data compiled by Bloomberg show.

Named after one of Thailand’s most successful rock bands, Carabao overtook Red Bull domestically, surged following its listing in 2014 and two years later became the world’s best-performing large soft-drink stock. But the challenge of successfully expanding in China and the U.K., key overseas markets, weighed on the shares more recently.

Read about Carabao’s attempt to take on Red Bull in China

“The U.K. operation has been disappointing, even with huge spending and investment, while China is a very tough market,” said Naree Apisawaittkan, an analyst at Phillip Securities Pcl in Bangkok. “The baht’s strength will also hurt profit margins from exports at a time when domestic consumption is weak.”

Chief Executive Officer Sathien Setthasit said in December that he plans to pour $300 million into expanding in China. Sathien was a billionaire when Carabao’s stock peaked last year. He now has a net worth of $718 million following the slide in the shares, according to the Bloomberg Billionaires Index.

Menisa Aramroongroj, investor relations manager at Carabao, couldn’t immediately be reached for comment. The firm in February said sponsorship of the Carabao Cup in England as well as Chelsea F.C. provide powerful marketing tools to spread its brand globally.

Net income slid about 16 percent last year to 1.2 billion baht ($40 million). The shares have more than doubled since listing, despite the recent drop.