AG Barr Sees FY Results Topping Mgmt View But 2H Seen Tougher

29th Jul 2010 08:01

LONDON (Dow Jones)--Soft drinks maker A.G. Barr PLC (BAG.LN) Thursday said it expects its full-year result to top current management expectations, following a strong first half in which it expects to grow sales 13% on last year, although it expects tougher trading in its second half. The Irn-Bru and Tizer maker said it faces tougher on-year comparative trading conditions in its second half and expects its performance to return to levels more in line with the overall soft drinks market. However in the first half, which ends July 31, AG Barr said sales continued to perform ahead of the market and it expects total first-half sales of GBP118 million, a 13% rise on what it made in the same period last year. The strong performance has been driven by sales growth across all its core brands, particularly Irn-Bru and Rubicon, the company said. AG Barr said operating margins remained in line with its expectations in the half, although it expects some significant inflation in imported fruit costs in the second half of the fiscal 2011, which will impact the Rubicon brand. The firm is taking steps to minimize this impact where possible and said it expects to implement specific price increases for Rubicon in the coming months. -By Hannah Benjamin, Dow Jones Newswires; 44-20-7842-9298; [email protected] (END) Dow Jones Newswires July 29, 2010 03:01 ET (07:01 GMT)