C&C Group, the Irish cider maker, said it expects its overall operating margin to increase by about six percentage points and its overall turnover to rise by approximately 25% for the year to 28 February 2007.
The company said the expected growth would reflect the continued strong growth in its cider division, primarily as a result of the excellent performance of Magners in Great Britain.
It said that it expects turnover growth in its cider division to be above 80%, driven by volume growth of around 5% for Bulmers, its Irish cider brand, and volume growth of approximately 225% for Magners.
Turnover in its soft drinks division is expected to show a decline of 1% reflecting the loss of the Danone Water brands, while its shipment volumes are expected to show growth of 11%.
The company also said it expected its distribution division to report a significant decline in profit as a result of the loss of the former Allied Domecq brands at the start of 2006.
It said that it plans to bring increased cider manufacturing capacity on line this spring and raise its overall level of marketing investment over its next financial year.
The group said that based on these plans it would expect operating profit growth to be in the range of 15% to 25% over the next 12 months.
