26th Nov 2013 08:54
LONDON (Alliance News) - Britvic PLC Tuesday reported higher profits and revenues for the full year ended September 29, as the soft-drinks maker raised prices and increased market share.
The British producer of Robinsons cordial and Tango soft drinks said it gained market share value during the recent year. Sales were boosted by the recent hot summer weather in the UK, Britvic said, increasing demand for its beverages.
Britvic also said its Fruit Shoot drink recovered from a low point suffered last year, when the company was forced to recall the product due to a safety scare over the plastic caps that it had been using on the drink's bottles. Fruit Shoot's British market share since has returned to pre-recall levels, the company said, and is ahead internationally.
The product's rebound contributed to a company-wide pretax profit of GBP108.1 million, up 28% on an actual exchange rate basis from GBP84.4 million a year earlier. On a constant exchange rate basis, pretax profit rose 27%.
The group said that profit for the year, after exceptional and other items, rose 7.8% on an actual exchange rate to GBP61.9 million from GBP57.4 million the prior year. It said that exceptional items included GBP9.6 million in costs associated with its aborted merger with A.G. Barr PLC and GBP23.5 million relating to the implementation of strategic cost-saving initiatives.
Britvic said it expects the consumer environment to remain challenging in 2014, but said trading so far in the new financial year is already ahead of a strong first quarter performance last year.
"We are confident of delivering (earnings before interest and taxes) in the range of GBP148 million to GBP156 million for the full year," said Chief Executive Officer Simon Litherland in a statement.
Britvic declared a final dividend of 13.0 pence per share, increasing its full year dividend by 4.0% to 18.4 pence per share.
The group reported revenue growth of 5.2% on an actual exchange rate basis, and 4.4% at constant exchange rates in the 52 weeks ended September 29, to GBP1.32 billion from GBP1.26 billion a year earlier.
It said that its GB still and carbonates division performed well, despite ongoing weakness and tough trading conditions in Ireland. Britvic also said its international business unit and its franchising model gained further momentum, as its rolled out Fruit Shoot across Spain. It said it is on-track to produce the drink in India by mid-2014 through a distribution agreement with the Narang Group.
The drinks maker said that it remains on track to deliver GBP30 million in cost savings per year by 2016, of which it said GBP10 million will be used to invest in its international growth opportunities.
Britvic said that during the year it signed a 15-year bottling agreement with PepsiCo America Beverages, part of PepsiCo Inc., to significantly expand its manufacturing and distribution activities in the US. It said that during 2014, Fruit Shoot will be distributed in 41 US states.
The group reduced its net debt by almost 10% during the year, due to a strong free cash flow generation of GBP103.5 million.
Britvic shares were trading 4.5% higher Tuesday morning at 634.08 pence per share.
By Rowena Harris-Doughty; [email protected]; @rharrisdoughty
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