LIVE BUSINESS: Raspberry Pi profits rise; AG Barr ignores cocktail slump; wage inflation hits card factory

Julie Palmer, Partner at Begbies Traynor, comments on AG Barr’s results:

The soft drink giant has been focusing for some time on refining its strategy to consolidate its leadership position in a competitive market and it is paying off.

By expanding its portfolio beyond the iconic Irn Bru into more diverse areas, from oat milk to cocktails, AG Barr has laid the foundations for future growth, which should be further supported by anticipated manufacturing synergies.

The maker of Scotland’s favourite soft drink is clearly keen to adapt to changing consumer trends, which should serve it well as it faces uncertain consumer confidence and ongoing cost pressures.

With the share price hitting five-year highs and positive results galore, new CEO Euan Sutherland appears to have taken over at a fortuitous time.

Irn-Bru maker AG Barr has reported a surge in sales over the past six months amid strong demand for soft drinks despite “disappointing early summer weather”.

However, the Scottish firm revealed a decline in profits due to one-off costs related to the closure of the Barr Direct delivery operation earlier this year and the integration of Boost, the energy drinks business it bought in 2022.

However, newly appointed boss Euan Sutherland said he was “pleased to report a strong set of first-half results”.

The company revealed that total revenue rose 5.2 per cent to £221.3m during the six months to July 26.

This was driven by its soft drinks business, which saw sales growth of 7 percent thanks to price increases and higher customer sales volumes.

The company said this came despite a slight decline in volume in the UK soft drinks market, which was “partly a consequence of disappointing early summer weather”.

The pound hit 1.20 euros against the euro last night for the first time in more than two years as figures suggested Germany was heading for recession.

Sterling rose almost a cent against the single currency to levels not seen since April 2022 as monthly business survey data showed a stark contrast between the UK and the eurozone.

Raspberry Pi profits rose in the technology group’s first six-month reporting period as a London-listed company as strong demand for higher-margin products offset weaker-than-expected sales volumes.

The group, which raised £178.9m when it debuted on the FTSE 250 in June, said sales rose 61 per cent to £144m in the six months to June 30.

This brought adjusted earnings before the attacks up 55 percent year-over-year to $20.9 million.

‘The IPO was the defining moment of the first half, with the listing taking place just two weeks before the end of the period. Over the course of the first half of the year, activity continued to be satisfactory, and we saw strong uptake of our latest flagship SBC, Raspberry Pi5, the launch of the Raspberry Pi AI Kit and the successful entry into production of RP2350, our second-generation microcontroller platform.

“The higher than usual customer and channel inventory levels evident at the time of the IPO have continued to decline, and there is a growing sense that this will be over by the end of the year. We have an outstanding team, a world-class product suite backed by an exciting future roadmap, and a loyal and engaged customer base that we can continue to grow. In the second half, we have planned further product launches and a number of initiatives to further expand our share of our industrial and embedded market.”