Forward looking statements and other matters
This announcement contains certain forward-looking statements, including “forward-looking” statements made within the meaning of the U.S. Private Securities Litigation Reform Act of 1995.
In particular, these forward-looking statements include, among other statements, statements regarding the Group’s future financial performance, planned product launches and future regulatory developments and business objectives (including with respect to sustainability and other environmental, social and governance matters), as well as: (i) certain statements in the Half-Year Summary and in the Chief Executive statement (both on page 1 of the full annoucement), including the Group’s expectations of being on track to deliver full-year guidance, an accelerated Group performance, including further improvements in New Category contribution margin, in the second half of the financial year ending 31 December 2025 and a return to the Group’s mid-term algorithm in 2026; (ii) the statements under On Track for Full-Year 2025 Guidance (page 2 of the full annoucement); (iii) statements in the Group Operating Review and the Category Performance Review sections (pages 3 to 4 and pages 8 to 9 of the full annoucement) with respect to the Group’s expectations of an accelerated New Categories performance and a continuing roll-out of Vuse Ultra and glo Hilo in the second half of the financial year ending 31 December 2025; (iv) certain statements in the Other Financial Information section (pages 10 to 12 of the full annoucement), including the Group’s expectations of being within its narrowed leverage range of 2.0-2.5x adjusted net debt/adjusted EBITDA (as adjusted for Canada) by the end of 2026, meeting or exceeding the operating cash conversion guidance of 90%, generating approximately £50 billion of free cash flow before dividends between 2024 and 2030, gross capital expenditure of approximately £650 million in 2025, its commitment to a progressive dividend based upon 65% of long-term sustainable earnings and second-half weighted cash flow; (v) statements in the Other Information section (pages 12 to 14 of the full annoucement) regarding the implementation of the Approved Plans in Canada, the related expectations of the Group to make an upfront payment of £2.6 billion in the second half of 2025, the Group’s going concern assessment and the generation of annualised cost efficiencies and cash flow of approximately £500 million by the end of 2028 in addition to £2 billion of targeted savings between 2026 and 2030; (vi) the statement in the Other Information section (page 14 of the full annoucement) and in the Notes to the Unaudited Interim Financial Statements section (page 25 of the full annoucement) referring to one-off costs of £500 million over two years; and (vii) statements in the Notes to the Unaudited Interim Financial Statements section (pages 23 to 39 of the full annoucement) referring to the expected gross capital expenditure of £650 million in 2025, the Group’s expectation that payments in respect of its estimated share of the future liability under the Approved Plans will continue for at least 40 years, the Group’s target of an average centrally managed bond maturity of at least five years with no more than 20% of centrally managed debt maturing in a single rolling 12-month period and its medium-target credit rating of Baa1, BBB+ and BBB+ from Moody’s, S&P and Fitch, respectively, the Group’s expectations and underlying assumptions with respect to contingent liabilities and its repayment schedule under the Franked investment income litigation order.
These statements are often, but not always, made through the use of words or phrases such as “believe,” “anticipate,” “could,” “may,” “would,” “should,” “intend,” “plan,” “potential,” “predict,” “will,” “expect,” “estimate,” “project,” “positioned,” “strategy,” “outlook,” “target” “being confident” and similar expressions. These include statements regarding our intentions, beliefs or current expectations concerning, amongst other things, our results of operations, financial condition, liquidity, prospects, growth, strategies and the economic and business circumstances occurring from time to time in the countries and markets in which the British American Tobacco Group (the “Group”) operates.
All such forward-looking statements involve estimates and assumptions that are subject to risks, uncertainties and other factors. It is believed that the expectations reflected in this announcement are reasonable, but they may be affected by a wide range of variables that could cause actual results and performance to differ materially from those currently anticipated. Among the key factors that could cause actual results to differ materially from those projected in the forward-looking statements are uncertainties related to the following: the impact of competition from illicit trade; the impact of adverse domestic or international legislation and regulation; the inability to develop, commercialise and deliver the Group’s New Categories strategy; the impact of supply chain disruptions; adverse litigation, external investigations and dispute outcomes and the effect of such outcomes on the Group’s financial condition; the impact of significant increases or structural changes in tobacco, nicotine and New Categories related taxes; translational and transactional foreign exchange rate exposure; changes or differences in domestic or international economic or political conditions; the ability to maintain credit ratings and to fund the business under the current capital structure; the impact of serious injury, illness or death in the workplace; adverse decisions by domestic or international regulatory bodies; direct and indirect adverse impacts associated with Climate Change; direct and indirect adverse impacts associated with Circularity; and Cyber Security caused by the heightened cyber-threat landscape, the increased digital interactions with consumers and changes to regulation.
A review of the reasons why actual results and developments may differ materially from the expectations disclosed or implied within forward-looking statements can be found by referring to the information contained under the headings “Cautionary statement”, “Group Principal Risks” and “Group Risk Factors” in the 2024 Annual Report and Accounts and Form 20-F of British American Tobacco p.l.c. (BAT). Additional information concerning these and other factors can be found in BAT’s filings with the U.S. Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC), including the Annual Report on Form 20-F and Current Reports on Form 6-K, which may be obtained free of charge at the SEC’s website, http://www.sec.gov and the BAT website, http://www.bat.com.
No statement in this announcement is intended to be a profit forecast and no statement in this communication should be interpreted to mean that earnings per share of BAT for the current or future financial years would necessarily match or exceed the historical published earnings per share of BAT. Past performance is no guide to future performance and persons needing advice should consult an independent financial adviser. The forward-looking statements reflect knowledge and information available at the date of preparation of this announcement and BAT undertakes no obligation to update or revise these forward-looking statements, whether as a result of new information, future events or otherwise. Readers are cautioned not to place undue reliance on such forward-looking statements.
All financial statements and financial information provided by or with respect to the U.S. or Reynolds American are initially prepared on the basis of U.S. GAAP and constitute the primary financial statements or financial records of the U.S./Reynolds American. This financial information is then converted to International Financial Reporting Standards as issued by the IASB and as adopted for use in the UK (IFRS) for the purpose of consolidation within the results of the Group. To the extent any such financial information provided in this announcement relates to the U.S. or Reynolds American it is provided as an explanation of, or supplement to, Reynolds American’s primary U.S. GAAP based financial statements and information.
Our products as sold in the U.S., including Vuse, Velo, Grizzly, Kodiak, and Camel Snus are subject to FDA regulation and no reduced-risk claims will be made as to these products without agency clearance.