Coca-Cola Europacific Partners (CCEP) has almost doubled its profits for the past year, crediting the reopening of the hospitality sector and key acquisitions.
The Coca-Cola bottling business for the UK and Europe revealed a 98.5% rise in profits after tax to £828.5 million (€988 million) for 2021, compared with the previous year.
Revenues also increased by 30% on the year, significantly driven by its acquisition of Australian bottling business Coca-Cola Amatil, according to the company.
Like-for-like sales increased by 4.5% on 2020 levels as customers bought more drinks outside of their homes, following the reopening of pubs, restaurants and bars. This was still 5.5% below the pre-pandemic levels seen in 2019.
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In Great Britain, the group said sales of Coca-Cola, Fanta and Monster all reported growth on pre-pandemic levels as they benefited from strong retail sales as well as a rebound from hospitality.
“2021 was an extraordinary year for CCEP,” CEO Damian Gammell said. “We are a stronger, more diverse business, built on great people, great service and great beverages – done sustainably.
“Solid top-line recovery, value share gains, operating margin expansion and remarkable free cash flow generation demonstrate our strong performance in a challenging environment.
“Our results also reflect the successful acquisition and integration of Coca-Cola Amatil, a fantastic business to have acquired at the right time, as we look forward to an even brighter future together.”
As a result of the “extraordinary year”, the group said it is “well-placed” for 2022 and expects a recovery is sales volumes to continue over the short term.
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