Coca-Cola Europacific reports full-year growth, launches fresh buyback

(Sharecast News) - Coca-Cola Europacific Partners reported higher revenue and profit for the year ended 31 December and announced a further €1bn share buyback on Tuesday, as the FTSE 100 bottler cited resilient demand, productivity gains and strong cash generation. Group revenue rose 2.3% to €20.9bn on both a reported and comparable basis, with adjusted comparable revenue up 2.8% on an FX-neutral basis.

Revenue per unit case increased 2.9% on an adjusted comparable basis to €5.38, reflecting positive mix, headline pricing and promotional optimisation.

Adjusted comparable volumes edged up 0.2% to 3,958 million unit cases, with Europe down 0.2% and Australia, Pacific and Southeast Asia (APS) up 1.0%.

Reported operating profit increased 31.0% to €2.79bn, while adjusted comparable operating profit rose 7.1% on an FX-neutral basis to €2.81bn, driven by topline growth and ongoing productivity and efficiency programmes.

Comparable diluted earnings per share were €4.11, up 6.2%, with reported EPS of €4.26, up 38.3%.

Comparable free cash flow was €1.84bn, supported by net cash from operating activities of €2.95bn and around €1bn of capital expenditure.

Net debt ended the year at 2.7 times comparable EBITDA, unchanged from the prior year.

"2025 has been another strong year for CCEP. We continue to refresh our consumers and lead value creation for our customers across beverage categories that are growing strongly," said Damian Gammell, chief executive.

"We delivered robust top and bottom-line growth, generated strong free cash flow and again grew shareholder returns."

He added that "our business continues to become more efficient, our multi-year productivity programmes supporting resilient profit growth and investment for the future," and said the company was investing "more than ever in growth and greater productivity to drive expanding operating margins."

By region, Europe generated revenue of €15.4bn, up 2.9% on a comparable basis, with operating profit rising 6.2% on an adjusted comparable basis to €2.14bn.

Volumes in Europe slipped 0.2%, reflecting softer demand in Germany and the impact of a higher sugar tax in France, partly offset by growth in away-from-home channels and in Coca-Cola Zero Sugar and energy drinks.

In APS, revenue was €5.5bn, broadly flat on a comparable basis but up 2.0% FX-neutral, while adjusted comparable operating profit increased 8.8% FX-neutral to €669m.

Volumes in APS rose 1.0%, with growth in Australia and the Philippines offset by a double-digit decline in Indonesia.

By category, Coca-Cola volumes were broadly stable for the year, down 0.1%, as a 5.3% increase in Coca-Cola Zero Sugar offset a 2.1% decline in Coca-Cola Original Taste.

Energy volumes rose 18.8%, with energy share up 200 basis points, while water grew 4.6% and sports drinks 4.5%.

Flavours and mixers declined 1.3%, and ready-to-drink tea and coffee fell 13.8%, reflecting weakness in Indonesia and the transition to Fuze Tea in Spain.

The board proposed a full-year dividend of €2.04 per share, up 3.6%, maintaining a payout ratio of around 50% of comparable earnings.

The company also announced a further share buyback of up to €1bn, subject to shareholder approval at the 2026 annual meeting.

For 2026, CCEP guided to comparable, FX-neutral revenue growth of 3% to 4%, operating profit growth of around 7% and cost of sales per unit case growth of about 1.5%.

Comparable free cash flow is expected to be at least €1.7bn, with capital expenditure at around 5% of revenue and a comparable effective tax rate of about 26%.

In a separate statement, the company confirmed that the €1bn buyback programme would start on 18 February and was expected to complete before the end of February 2027.

Purchases would be made on US and London trading venues, with shares repurchased to be cancelled, reducing issued share capital.

The initial phase would be executed by Goldman Sachs under agreed parameters and within existing shareholder authorities.

At 1024 GMT, shares in Coca-Cola Europacific Partners were up 1.48% at 7,540p.

Reporting by Josh White for Sharecast.com.