Dive Brief:

• Anheuser-Busch InBev reported better-than-expected results for the third quarter.
• The world's largest brewer said core profit (EBITDA) rose 10.5 percent to $4.66 billion. Analysts had expected EBITDA of only $4.54 billion. Net income rose to $2.21 billion from $1.84 billion a year earlier. Revenue climbed 3 percent.
• The maker of Budweiser, Beck's et al warned of an expected fall in sales this year in its massive Brazilian market.

Dive Insight:

That rise in EBITDA is about a clear a sign as we're likely to see that Anheuser-Busch InBev​ will soon pursue a merger. Analysts have their eyes on the EBITDA to debt ratio, which the company has said it wants to get to 2 or below by next year. As Anheuser-Busch InBev​ absorbs Grupo Modelo SAB​, which it bought for $20.1 billion earlier this year, and EBITDA rises, that target grows ever closer. Then the mother of all beer mergers appears likely.