LONDON (ShareCast) - (Sharecast News) - Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Company saw its net profits more than double over the half

Net sales revenues surged by 19.3% to €5.02bn while comparable earnings before interest and taxes was ahead by 21.2% to €560.7m.

That resulted in a leap in net profits to from €152.9m one year before to €385.7m, while earnings per share improved from 41.8 euro cents to €1.05.

"It has been a very good first half of the year with progress across our strategic pillars. Our priority categories of Sparkling, Energy and Coffee, together with a strong performance across all segments, have driven organic revenues and EBIT growth ahead of expectations," said Coca Cola HBC chief Zoran Bogdanovic.

"While some markets continue to face a challenging consumer environment, revenue per case has been improved through careful price and mix management enhanced by data, insights and analytics. At the same time, volumes have remained resilient which is testament to the quality of our execution."

Free cash flow on the other hand dropped by 22.9% to €256.6bn.

Guidance was reiterated for average annual organic growth of 6-7%, up from a prior range for 5-6%. Average annual organic EBIT was seen expanding 20-40bp per year.

-- More to follow --

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