British soft drinks company Britvic Plc has reported higher first-quarter revenue, driven by sales of low sugar and fruit-based beverages.
Britvic, whose brands include Tango, J2O, Fruit Shoot and Teisseire, said revenue rose 4.5% to £352.4 million in the quarter.
The FTSE 250 company is adapting to changing preferences of consumers as they opt for low sugar and healthier drinks and dealing with Britain's sugar tax levy that came into force last April.
It is also fending off competition from Nichols Plc and Refresco by adding citrus variants to its portfolio.
Solid Update
"Overall, we view this as a solid update and as a result there is no change to our positive view on the stock underpinned by a strong low-sugar focused portfolio of brands," said Goodbody analyst Patrick Higgins.
Britvic's Chief Executive Officer, Simon Litherland, said the firm was confident of making further progress in 2019.
"We have delivered a solid start to the new financial year, with performance in line with our expectations. Given the resilience of our business, the strength of our portfolio and exciting marketing and innovation plans, we are confident of making further progress in 2019,” he said.
News by Reuters, edited by ESM. Click subscribe to sign up to ESM: European Supermarket Magazine.
