· New 20-year bottling contract for PepsiCo charred brands in the UK „We are very pleased to announce this new and best exclusive bottling date with Britvic in the UK and further strengthen our portfolio with the exciting addition of Rockstar. This decision was based on our history of sustained market performance, supported by Britvic`s continued commitment to invest well behind our brands. Despite the current economic situation in the country, sales of known soft drinks appear to be holding up somewhat. Britvic PLC, based in Chelmsford (ranked in London under BVIC, capitalized at USD 681 million) benefits. The company`s half-year results figures as of April 12, 2009 are encouraging – revenue, profit and dividends are all higher than the last reporting period. But what is interesting for most investors in the medium term is how far Britvic can still go in this rather weak and mature business. Will it be bought by Pepsi, as some investors hope, or will it create a large European business with a portfolio of well-known brands, as predicted by other more ambitious investors? The company is currently the second largest producer and distributor of soft drinks in the UK (Coca Cola Enterprises is the largest producer). Britvic has a diverse customer base that supplies beverages to more than 200,000 outlets across the country, including Tesco, Sainsbury`s, Asda and WM Morrison. With the acquisition of C-C Group in the Republic of Ireland in 2007 for $170 million, Britvic now has considerable and potentially strong activity. Other international transactions are fairly insignificant ($9 million in sales for the six months to April 12, 09).
The company`s leading leaders are seemingly recession-resistant brands such as Pepsi, 7UP, Gatorade, Tango, Robinsons, Fruit Shoot and J2O. Britvic`s main business partner is Pepsi Co; This partnership has worked well so far and Britvic has entered into several long-term bottling and distribution agreements with Pepsi Co in the UK and Ireland for brands such as Pepsi, Gatorade and 7UP (the UK-Ireland agreement is expected to be extended in 2023 and Ireland runs until 2015). In its recent history, Britvic was a high-activity company with virtually no equity and all capital requirements were met by debt. The Company currently has $443 million in external capital (including $11.6 million for a current $11.6 million on unsecured bank loans); The pre-tax cost of this debt is 6.10%. Interest hedging rate is 3.4.Current assets generated revenue of $483.2 million in six months to April 12, 09, an increase of 6.3% over the previous period. And although gross margin was down 2 points from the previous period, we still have an EPS of 6.7 pence, an increase of 11.7% over the previous period. This was achieved through well-controlled sales and management costs and reduced financing costs.