AG Barr expects to make around £267m in revenue for the financial year ending 30 January 2022 - a 17.5% increase from the £227m it made last year.
The drinks company - which produces IRN BRU, Rubicon and Funkin - also noted that revenues are set to exceed pre-pandemic levels (£255.7m), which also included around £21m from the Rockstar brand revenue.
A trading update also confirmed it has a round £66m of net cash, following the completion of its equity investment in MOMA Foods.
The note praised the “quality and resilience” of its brands, business model and people for helping achieve the strong trading performance, despite the last round of Covid-19 restrictions.
These have impacted consumer behaviour across the year, although both its Barr Soft Drinks and Funkin business units traded well.
AG Barr confirmed that the inflationary pressures predicted in its November update have materialised as expected, particularly across packaging and energy-linked commodities.
As a result, the group has initiated several cost control actions to reduce the impact of these rising costs, along with pricing adjustments where appropriate.
Chief executive Roger White said: “We have remained fully operational throughout the year, producing high-quality products and providing strong business support to all of our customers.
“We have delivered an excellent financial performance against a volatile backdrop, while at the same time delivering on our strategic priorities, with particularly encouraging progress made across our environmental sustainability programme.
“We plan to further invest in our business in 2022/23 and remain confident in our ability to deliver continued growth in both revenue and profit in the coming year.”
John Moore, senior investment manager at Brewin Dolphin, commented: “Inflation is a challenge, but the company is taking steps to mitigate that pressure and its operating margin is slightly better than last year’s, with profits expected to be ahead of guidance too.
“Although AG Barr has traditionally tended to err on the side of caution, with around £66m of net cash shareholders should expect to see rewards for their patience and you wouldn’t rule out further earnings-enhancing investments in other businesses to complement the recent equity stake in MOMA.”
Full year results are expected to be announced on 29 March.
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