Coca Cola Hellenic Reports Fourth-Quarter Loss

February 14, 2013, 2:42 a.m. ET

The Wall Street Journal

ATHENS--Greece's Coca-Cola Hellenic Bottling Co.(CCH) Thursday reported a net loss of 45.8 million euros ($61.6 million) in the fourth quarter, as restructuring costs and weak sales in many of its markets weighed on earnings, and it warned that economic conditions in 2013 remain challenging.

Excluding the restructuring costs, CCH said it had made a net profit of EUR22.3 million, down 22%, when measured on a like-for-like basis with a year earlier.

MAIN FACTS:

-Net loss totaled EUR45.8 million, from a loss of EUR11.6 million in 2011.

-Restructuring costs of EUR66.6 million incurred in fourth quarter.

-Comparable net profit EUR22.3 million, from EUR28.7 million.

-Revenue was EUR1.60 billion, up from EUR1.52 billion.

-Unit case volumes sold 476.9 million (2011: 466.3 million)

-Loss before interest and taxes EUR28.4 million (2011: Profit EUR24.2 million). Comparable EBIT at EUR53 million. (2011: EUR73 million)

-CCH CEO says: "We anticipate that in 2013, disposable income will remain under pressure, resulting from continued austerity measures and high unemployment, particularly in our established markets."

-CCH says: "We continue to implement our restructuring initiatives with the aim of sustainably improving operational efficiency, without affecting our ability to grow. As previously announced, we accelerated some of our restructuring plans and brought them forward into 2012."

Write to Alkman Granitsas at alkman.granitsas@dowjones.com