Cadbury Schweppes said a move by General...

Cadbury Schweppes said a move by General Cinema to increase its stake in British soft drink and candy company was “a highly opportunistic move by the Chestnut Hill, Mass.-firm which has a market capitalization little more than half that of Cadbury Schweppes.” General Cinema confirmed that it recently boosted its stake to 18% of Cadbury’s outstanding shares. Pointing to record earnings announced two months ago, Cadbury said its current low share price was merely a reflection of the recent collapse in world stock markets. Cadbury’s stock closed down 1.8 cents at $3.98 a share on the London Stock Exchange.