Robinsons and J2O maker Britvic usually has a boost ahead from its sponsorship of Wimbledon but executives will be hoping for a lockdown lift as it updates the City on Wednesday.
Britvic said it expects the closure of all pubs and bars to hit the business by between £12 million and £18 million a month, with on-trade sales making up 25% of business.
Data shows there has been an uptick in supermarket sales in the sector, but it is not expected to be enough to offset the fall from the closures.
What investors will want to know is whether they will be paying for the extra costs, with a decision expected over whether to suspend a planned interim dividend.
In this week’s Monday interview, a veteran digital transformation specialist has described the impact the coronavirus has had on clients across sectors as the pandemic has accelerated the need for many to have an online presence.
John McLeish, of Equator, has said many of the agency’s clients in travel and leisure suspended budgets completely while some have been unable to pay their bills, and the crisis has prompted others to accelerate their online offering.
He said: “Our clients in the travel and leisure sector have pretty much been decimated, so they’ve basically suspended all budgets, which is a significant revenue impact to Equator.”
In Mark Williamson’s SME Focus, John Castley of Wild Hearth Bakery, which is based at Cultybraggan Prisoner of War Camp, Comrie, Perth and Kinross, says: “When the coronavirus pandemic hit we scrambled to turn our business model on its head.”
Also, in this week’s Business Voices column, Guy Stenhouse says Scotland must set a target to re-open the countryside as ‘tourist income is vital to keeping many communities viable’.
Read all these stories in this week's Herald business section print and online editions.
As the Britivic figures approach, analysts at Jefferies said a dividend postponement had "potential" but pointed out the company had enough cash to see out the crisis.
In a note, they said: "Whilst the company has sufficient liquidity for the current uncertain environment, there is a scenario where the company postpones the decision around the interim dividend until later in the year."
JP Morgan analysts added that they expect a dividend suspension and forecast a boost in sales for the company from the pre-lockdown stockpiling and strong supermarket sales.
The results cover the six months to March 31 and JP Morgan predict a 1% growth in organic sales, with underlying profits up 2% to £71.2 million.
But the City will want to know what the rest of the year will look like, with Wednesday's results only covering a few weeks of lockdown.
Predictions from analysts are already suggesting full year profits will be down by around 20%. JP Morgan predicted an 8% rise in off-trade sales but a 66% drop in on-trade business in the second half of Britvic's financial year.
At Jefferies, analysts said even with pubs reopening, it could take some time for consumers to return in sufficient numbers, with six months of disruption expected.
They wrote: "Whilst this may be conservative, we expect to see a delay between easing of restrictions and consumer behaviour in the on-trade returning to normal."
The soft drinks market is also expected to fair better during the crisis than the beer sector, analysts added.
UK-based Britvic makes around 40% of its revenues from overseas, so will be hoping eased restrictions in other countries can help the business recover.
Its portfolio includes Robinsons, J2O, Tango and Fruit Shoot, among others, and it has the exclusive licence to produce and sell Pepsi and 7UP in the UK and Ireland.
In the diary for this week, on Tuesday the CBI Quarterly Distributive Trades Survey is due along with Aviva’s AGM.
On Wednesday, alongside Britvic, British Land finals are due, a trading update expected from Provident Financial and also the BP AGM.
PayPoint finals are due on Thursday, as are the DMGT interims.
There is also the ONS: Coronavirus, the UK economy and society, faster indicators figures. It is new data and experimental indicators on the UK economy and society, including information related to the coronavirus.
On Friday the Nationwide house price survey for May, Bank of England Capital Issuance and Eve Sleep AGM are scheduled.
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