14 February 2001 - Summary
·Underlying pre-tax profit and earnings per share both rose by 15%.
·Record free cash flow of £401 million.
·Excellent beverage performance with Dr Pepper/Seven Up outperforming the US market, Mott's delivering record performance, and profits up 36% in European beverages.
·Satisfactory confectionery performance with market share gains in UK chocolate, strong volumes in Australia and progress in main emerging markets.
·Business significantly strengthened by acquisitions - including Snapple in the US, Hollywood in France and Lion Nathan soft drinks operations in Australia.
·Financial targets set for the next four year phase of Managing for Value.
John Sunderland, Cadbury Schweppes' CEO, said:
"2000 was another good year for Cadbury Schweppes with successful execution of our strategy delivering the financial targets to which we are committed. Strong brands, actively managed in growth markets, continue to drive performance. We also made significant progress towards improving our business portfolio. We acquired strong companies which bolstered our position in a number of key markets and reorganised our management structure to enhance performance. With even greater focus on growth and efficiency, we are confident Cadbury Schweppes will continue to deliver growth in shareowner value in the next phase of our Managing for Value programme".