Bottler Coca-Cola HBC has raised its annual operating profit and revenue forecasts, as the Swiss group posted higher first-half revenue, helped by its measures to mitigate the impact of high inflation and currency fluctuations.
Demand for packaged beverages and food has stayed resilient, even as companies hiked prices to pass on elevated raw material costs to consumers. A gradually improving economic environment has also encouraged beverage makers to raise their forecasts for the year.
Growth Expectations
For the full year 2024, organic revenue growth is expected to be between 8% and 12%, up from the company's previous mid-term target range of 6%-7%, it said.
Organic earnings before interest and taxes growth is expected to lie within the range of 7% to 12%, up from the previous estimates of 3% to 9%.
For the first half of 2024, the bottler posted a 13.6% jump in organic revenue.
Coca-Cola HBC reported a 3.1% growth in organic volume in the period, with all the company's strategic priority categories contributing to this increase, it noted. Specifically, Sparkling beverages grew by 0.9%, Energy drinks surged by 32.8%, and Coffee saw a 21.6% rise. In the second quarter, volumes increased by 4.2%, with all segments contributing to this growth.
Additionally, the company achieved a 10.2% growth in organic revenue per case, driven by targeted revenue growth management initiatives.
'A Strong First Half'
“This has been a strong first half of the year, even as we navigated challenging environments in several markets," commented Zoran Bogdanovic, chief executive. "Focused execution behind our 24/7 portfolio drove organic revenue growth of 13.6%.
"Supported by continued targeted investment, we have delivered organic volume growth across each of our strategic priority categories of Sparkling, Energy and Coffee, and further increased our value share in NARTD."
Additional reporting by ESM
