Aug 9 (Reuters) - Bottler Coca-Cola HBC beat half-year profit expectations and lifted its annual revenue target on Wednesday, supported by strong sales and higher prices of its soft drinks.
Demand for packaged food and beverages has so far stayed resilient despite the cost-of-living crisis, even as companies hiked prices of their products to pass on high energy and input costs to consumers.
The Switzerland-based company, of which U.S. beverage giant Coca-Cola owns 20%, forecast organic revenue growth in a mid-teens percentage for the full year, compared with its prior guidance of 5-6%.
It reported a comparable operating profit of 560.7 million euros ($614.9 million) for the six months through June, up 21.2% from a year earlier.
Analysts had expected a profit of about 521.5 million euros, according to a poll compiled by the company.
Profit outlook, which the company had raised last month, remained unchanged. ($1 = 0.9118 euros) (Reporting by Radhika Anilkumar in Bengaluru; Editing by Milla Nissi)