Shares go to water over Woolies move

COCA Cola Amatil shares have spluttered after Woolworths decided to ditch several of its Mount Franklin water products from supermarket shelves.

Woolworths will keep Mount Franklin’s most popular product lines — the bulk 20 pack and sixpack bottles of water — and the 600ml individual bottle range will still be sold at the front of stores.

But the larger bottles and the bulk 12-packs will be jettisoned from August, with Woolworths saying the latest shake-up was a result of customers wanting more choices when it comes to water.

“Our customers are purchasing a wide variety of water options — both branded and non-branded — and as the category continues to increase in popularity we will respond to meet our customers’ demands in the space,” a Woolworths spokesman said.

Water sales at Woolworths have been bubbling along nicely this year, with sales across the entire category up 20 per cent on the year prior.

The supermarket chain is tipped to replace the outgoing Mount Franklin products with its own range of home branded water, called Select Water.

Coca Cola Amatil’s share price fizzled following the news, with the beverage bottler’s stock losing 3.86 per cent to close at $8.23.

A company spokesman said the decision by Woolworths would not hurt Coca Cola Amatil’s bottom line.