Cadbury gets upper hand in Kraft battle
CONFECTIONARY giant Cadbury yesterday released a stellar set of third quarter results as it desperately tries to fend off a hostile takeover approach from America’s Kraft.
Cadbury said its revenues grew by seven per cent in constant currency terms, beating expectations and putting pressure on Kraft to come up with a bigger offer to get its hands on the confectionary group.
And the group unexpectedly raised its sales and margin-growth targets for the full year, sending its shares up to 799p – well above Kraft’s 726p takeover offer.
It moved forecasts for full-year revenue growth from the bottom end of expectations to the middle of its four to six per cent target range.
And chief executive of Todd Stitzer said the firm was returning to more “normal” growth rates now that the worst of the recession was over.
He said he expected underlying sales growth of at least five per cent in 2010 and 2011. “We have the momentum and the growth,” he added.
The firm reported growing sales in all three of its categories – chocolate, gum and candy – over the course of the quarter.
Chocolate sales rose seven per cent year on year, gum rose four per cent and candy rose 11 per cent, it said.
But growth in chocolate, which accounts for nearly half of Cadbury’s worldwide sales, was slower than the 10 per cent reported in the first half.