Shares of SodaStream (SODA +0.00%) were among last week's biggest winners, moving 10% higher.
A new carbonation system -- SodaStream Play -- was announced on Thursday. The stock gained some fizz earlier in the week when Wal-Mart (WMT +0.99%) had some encouraging comments to say about the company behind the system that turns still water into flavored soda.
Wal-Mart's comments came as a welcome surprise during a Goldman Sachs conference. The world's largest retailer specifically singled out SodaStream's continuing momentum at its stores. The discount department store chain began stocking SodaStream carbonators and flavored syrups in May of last year. As large as Wal-Mart is, the retailer specifically said that it expects "healthy contributions" from SodaStream.
Then we have SodaStream Play. The new soda makers won't hit the market until early next year, but they will be unveiled at a trade show in London this week. Offering a sleek design and introducing a smaller bottle option, Play will be a compelling choice for soda sippers that want to choose between making a liter or a half liter of soda at a time.
Innovation has never stopped at SodaStream, and it's coming off another strong quarterly showing where revenue and earnings rose 29% and 36%, respectively.
Naysayers who have questioned the long-term appeal of making soft drinks at home have been burned as SodaStream has been growing globally at a double-digit percentage clip for years. There are already four countries where SodaStream machines are in at least 10% of the homes, and the U.S. is not one of them.
Shares of SodaStream popped three months ago when published reports out of the company's Israeli home claimed that PepsiCo (PEP +0.67%) was exploring an acquisition of the fast-growing consumer products darling. PepsiCo quickly denied the reports, and that's kept SodaStream on ice in recent months.
Last week's double dose of good news -- Wal-Mart's encouraging comments and a new soda maker -- pushed the shares to a two-month high, but the stock will have to move even higher if it wants to take out the 52-week high it hit during the PepsiCo buyout speculation in early June.
Shareholder will naturally take last week's pop, but it's perfectly natural for them to be thirsty for more.
