strong buy, page-55

I've been watching this one for a while thinking CCL would be a good one to put away in the bottom draw for long term income. I never quite managed to pull the trigger and am still hesitating because:

1. like many other things in Australia, coke is very expensive compared to the identical product in just about every other country I have been to

2. the consumer drift away from sugar based drinks and the rise of own brand bottled water products make me question whether there is much (if any) domestic growth for the company's main products. Given the lofty multiples this company needs to show at least some growth to justify the current share price

3. given how strongly the Indonesian economy has grown over the last several years, I am disappointed with the results from that country. The currency does not help either

4. gearing is high and any increase in interest rates will be a negative

5. how likely is it that the review will result in another write down and/or a big chunk of cash being spent on some kind of initiative? Quite high IMHO

I think I will sit on the sidelines a bit longer.