British American Tobacco (BAT) expects full-year revenue growth of 2-4 per cent at constant currency rates, due to more people using its e-cigarettes and oral nicotine products, reports Reuters.

BAT forecast mid-single figure adjusted diluted earnings per share growth at constant currency, including a transactional FX headwind of c.2 per cent. The company also projected net finance costs above GBP 1.6bn, driven by rising interest rates and USD strength and FY operating cash conversion in excess of 90 per cent of adjusted profit from operations, according to a BAT press release.
In the first nine months of the year, BAT says 3.2 million more consumers started using its non-combustible products meaning the total number of users has now reached 21.5 million people.
“Our New Category business continues to drive strong volume, revenue and market share growth and has become a significant contributor to group performance. Our exciting new product launches and innovations, supported by further geographic expansion, have enabled the addition of another 3.2mn consumers within our non-combustible franchise in the first nine months, reaching 21.5mn, said Jack Bowles, Chief Executive.
“We expect to deliver strong adjusted operating margin improvement despite increasing inflation in our supply chain. This has been made possible through robust pricing, the scale of our brands and increasingly focusing our marketing investments. […] Our business is highly cash generative, and in 2022 we expect another year of operating cash conversion well ahead of our 90 per cent target. While expecting net finance costs to increase given the recent speed and significance of global interest rate rises and currency volatility, we will benefit from a 90 per cent fixed debt-profile and an average maturity of over 10 years. In summary, our transformation is accelerating, driven by our New Categories performance, and we are delivering on our full year guidance. Together, this will enable us to further invest in, and accelerate the transformation of, our business,” Bowles concluded.