Results for the nine months ended 26 September 2014
SOLID PERFORMANCE DESPITE VOLUME PRESSURE
Coca-Cola HBC AG, the second largest bottler of the brands of The Coca-Cola Company, reports its financial results for the nine-month period ended 26 September 2014.
Third quarter and nine-month highlights
- Gained or maintained market share in volume and value in 15 markets in Sparkling beverages and in 10 markets in NARTD1
- Volume declined in the quarter at a faster pace than in the first half, due to unseasonably poor weather in Established markets and our strategic decision to focus on sustainable value-accretive volume in Developing markets
- Strong growth in currency-neutral net sales revenue per unit case continued – up 3% in the quarter - mainly as a result of improved package mix through the successful implementation of our revenue growth management initiatives and pricing implemented earlier in the year
- Benefits from cost saving actions have gained momentum, resulting in a 30bps reduction in operating expenses as a percentage of net sales revenue
- Improved comparable EBIT margin in the quarter and the nine months, mainly due to revenue growth initiatives, favourable input costs and lower operating expenses
- Solid free cash flow generation, with continued reduction in the working capital balance
|
|
Q3 |
Q3 |
Change |
|
|
2014 |
2013 |
|
|
Volume (m unit cases) |
547.6 |
575.0 |
-4.8% |
|
Net Sales Revenue (€ m) |
1,817.1 |
1,918.3 |
-5.3% |
|
Net Sales Revenue per Unit Case (€) |
3.32 |
3.34 |
-0.6% |
|
Currency Neutral Net Sales Revenue per Unit Case (€) |
3.32 |
3.23 |
2.8% |
|
Comparable EBIT (€ m) |
200.9 |
207.4 |
-3.1% |
|
Comparable EBIT margin (%) |
11.1 |
10.8 |
30bps |
|
Comparable Net Profit* (€ m) |
148.2 |
148.1 |
0.1% |
|
Comparable EPS (€) |
0.41 |
0.41 |
- |
|
|
|
|
|
|
|
Nine months |
Nine Months |
Change |
|
|
2014 |
2013 |
|
|
Volume (m unit cases) |
1,517.8 |
1,579.4 |
-3.9% |
|
Net Sales Revenue (€ m) |
5,000.2 |
5,299.4 |
-5.6% |
|
Net Sales Revenue per Unit Case (€) |
3.29 |
3.36 |
-2.1% |
|
Currency Neutral Net Sales Revenue per Unit Case (€) |
3.29 |
3.21 |
2.5% |
|
Comparable EBIT (€ m) |
367.8 |
385.6 |
-4.6% |
|
Comparable EBIT margin (%) |
7.4 |
7.3 |
10bps |
|
Comparable Net Profit* (€ m) |
247.0 |
258.8 |
-4.6% |
|
Comparable EPS (€) |
0.68 |
0.71 |
-4.2% |
* Comparable Net Profit refers to comparable net profit after tax attributable to owners of the parent.
Dimitris Lois, Chief Executive Officer of Coca-Cola HBC AG, commented:
“Although ongoing weak consumer sentiment and poor summer weather have impacted volumes in many of our markets, we are pleased with our profitability performance this quarter. Our well executed commercial strategy delivered further growth in net sales revenue per case which, combined with continued efficiency improvements and the favourable input cost environment, delivered good EBIT margin improvement.
We expect markets to remain challenging for the remainder of the year. We will focus on revenue growth management initiatives while addressing affordability. With these initiatives in place, as well as our actions to improve cost efficiency and cash flow generation, we continue to believe that performance for the year will be in line with our expectations.”
1 Nielsen September Quarter 3 data based on 24 measured markets in Sparkling beverages and 21 measured markets in NARTD; NARTD: non-alcoholic ready-to-drink