C&C shares dip 7c despite sales rise

DRINKS group C&C saw its share price dip by 2.82% or 7c to €2.52, yesterday, despite encouraging news from latest industry data in Britain.

According to latest Nielsen off-trade figures for the British market, for C&C’s financial year to date (which runs until the end of February), volumes of its cider brand, Magners, are up by 12%, with pricing down by 9% on a year-on-year basis.

For the four weeks to the end of October, Magners’ pricing trend is moving upwards in Britain’s off-trade market.

“This month, C&C will start to lap easier price comparisons and we should start to see Magners’ pricing improve on a year-on-year basis,” said Barry Gallagher of Davy Stockbrokers.

Volumes for both Magners in Britain and Bulmers in Ireland – down by 8.4% and 6.3%, respectively – were weaker during October than the cider market on a whole.

In its interim results announcement, last month, covering the six months to the end of August, C&C said Bulmers volumes here were level for the period.

Those results also detailed a 10.5% year-on-year drop in revenue to €257.5m and a 13.6% drop in operating profit to €57.4m.

The group added, at that point, that it remained on target to deliver its previously stated objective of stabilised cider volumes in 2009/2010 and that it was reviewing its cider pricing strategy across all markets.

In the long term, C&C has identified the Nordic markets of Finland and Sweden as potential new markets for the Magners brand and has said that further cider-orientated products could be developed outside of the Bulmers/Magners brand.