Britvic plc (LONH:BVIC) has reported year-to-date revenue of £1,027.7m, a decline of 5.1%* on last year, while Q3 revenue declined 16.3%* to £328.9m. As anticipated, and previously communicated in our interim results, Covid-19 has impacted performance. Significant declines in Out-of-Home consumption were partly offset by strong growth in At-Home consumption, resulting in market value share gains across our business units.
In March we estimated the impact of full Covid-19 restrictions on adjusted EBIT in 2020 at between £12m to £18m per month, net of mitigating actions. As we entered the crucial summer trading period lockdown restrictions started to ease and the hospitality industry has gradually begun to re-open. It is however too early to judge the impact this will have on the business; we therefore maintain our previously estimated monthly impact of full Covid-19 restrictions on adjusted EBIT.
Simon Litherland, Britvic Chief Executive, commented:
“As expected, Q3 demonstrates the full market impact of the Covid-19 lockdown. We have continued to focus on the clear priorities we set to navigate through the pandemic, which have helped us to manage our business effectively and to deliver a third-quarter performance in line with our expectations. I am pleased with both the market share gains and the performance across the channels open to us, however in the near term there remains a high degree of uncertainty about the pace and level of full recovery. Looking further ahead, I am confident that the strong momentum we built up going into the pandemic will return, and that our long-term strategy will continue to create value for all our stakeholders.”
*All comparisons to last year are on a constant currency basis with 2019 restated to reflect the previously announced move to monthly accounting.
