British American Tobacco Backs 2018 Guidance; Says Efforts to Pay Down Debt on Track

By Carlo Martuscelli

British American Tobacco PLC (BATS.LN) said Wednesday that its guidance for 2018 remains unchanged and that efforts to deleverage the business are on track.

The company said it sees good growth in revenue and adjusted operating profit, on a constant currency basis and weighed toward the second half of the year. Full-year adjusted earnings-per-share growth will be hit by currency headwinds of around 6%, it said. In the U.S., decreases in industry volume are in line with historic figures, down 4.4% in the year to date.

Its newer products in the vapor and heated-tobacco categories are expected to reach 900 million pounds ($1.13 billion) in revenue for 2018, the FTSE 100-listed company said.

Referring to reports of a possible ban on menthol cigarettes in the U.S., the company said regulation of the flavored tobacco products should be "developed through a comprehensive rule-making process" and "be based on a thorough review of the science."

British American Tobacco said it expects its net debt to adjusted Ebitda ratio at current exchange rates to be around 3.9 times by the end of the year.

Write to Carlo Martuscelli at [e-mail]

(END) Dow Jones Newswires

December 12, 2018 02:36 ET (07:36 GMT)

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