(Reuters) -Britain's A.G. Barr raised its annual profit forecast on Tuesday and said revenue for the year was set to top pre-pandemic levels after it enjoyed strong sales of soft drinks like Irn-Bru and cocktail mixer brand Funkin.
While drinking in pubs and restaurants took a hit due to COVID-related curbs in Britain with renewed restrictions in December due to the Omicron variant, at-home drinking has picked up over the course of the pandemic.
A.G. Barr said on Tuesday it had initiated cost control actions, including increasing the prices of its drinks, to mitigate a hit from previously-flagged inflationary cost pressures.
Shares of the group were up 2% by 08:20 GMT.
The beverages group forecast revenue of 267 million pounds ($359.2 million) for the year ended Jan. 30, and said it expects profit before tax and one-time items to be slightly ahead of its forecast in November.
"We have remained fully operational throughout the year," Chief Executive Officer Roger White said, adding that the company will make further investments into the business, giving it confidence for continued growth in the coming year.
A.G. Barr rival and tonic maker Fevertree had also raised its annual revenue forecast last month.
($1 = 0.7433 pounds)