Quarter Results: Highs & Lows Of FMCG Companies While Nestle, Marico, HUL, Britannia clocked substantial profit, other FMCG majors such as Dabur and Colgate-Palmolive saw a decline in net profit
By Shrabona Ghosh •
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In the fourth quarter earnings, fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) companies showed mixed results. While Nestle, Marico, HUL, Britannia clocked substantial profit, other FMCG majors saw decline in profit.
Hindustan Unilever (HUL): HUL reported a 10 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in profit after tax for the quarter ended March 2023. The turnover growth jumped 11 per cent with volume growth standing at 4 per cent. "Looking forward, the near-term operating environment is likely to remain volatile. With inflation easing due to lapping of high base and sequential softening in a few commodities, price and volume growths will rebalance. Market volumes will recover gradually as consumption habits readjust," said CEO and Managing Director Sanjiv Mehta.
Nestle: Nestle India reported a 24 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in profit at INR 736.64 crore for the quarter ended March 2023. The company reported a 21 per cent YoY hike in its revenue from operations to INR 4,830.5 crore in January-March quarter of CY23 against INR 3992.6 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year. "All our product groups delivered double digit growth, a notable feature in these past four quarters in a row. Confectionery led by KITKAT, and MUNCH posted a strong growth, supported by consumer led campaigns, innovation and engagement," said Suresh Narayanan, chairman and managing director.
Britannia: Britannia Industries Ltd reported a 47 per cent rise in consolidated net profit at INR 559 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2023. Total revenue from operations stood at INR 4,023.18 crore, registering a growth of 13.31 per cent, the company said in a regulatory filing. The growth can be attributed to the various measures taken on the cost & profitability front. Input prices softened on the back of correction in Palm Oil & Packaging materials, while flour continued to trend higher. The cost efficiency program coupled with moderation in commodity inflation led to a healthy operating margin in this quarter. "We are being vigilant of the competitive actions in the marketplace and closely monitoring the commodity situation in the country, especially around wheat and sugar. We shall deploy appropriate pricing actions to remain competitive and drive market share growth," said Varun Berry, vice chairman and managing director, Britannia Industries.
Godrej Consumer Products: Godrej Consumer Products reported a 24.47 per cent growth in its consolidated net profit to INR 452.14 crore in the fourth quarter. In this quarter volume grew by 6 per cent. "Consolidated sales grew by 10 per cent in INR terms and 14 per cent in constant currency terms. We have continued to witness sequential improvement in volume growth with 6 per cent year-on-year increase in Q4. The performance was broad based with India branded business delivering stellar volume growth of 13 per cent, led by double-digit volume growth in both Home Care and Personal Care," said Sudhir Sitapati, managing director and CEO, GCPL.
Marico: FMCG major, Marico reported a 20 per cent year-on-year (YoY) increase in the consolidated net profit for the quarter ended March. The PAT stood at INR 302 crore compared with INR 251 crore in the same quarter in FY22. Revenue from operations rose marginally by 4 per cent YoY to INR 2,240 crore. "FY 23 ended on a reassuring note with improving trends performance, parameters accompanied by indications of a gradual sectoral recovery," said Saugata Gupta, MD and CEO.
Dabur: Though Dabur India clocked an increase in consolidated revenue in the quarter ended March 2023, its net profit declined marginally. On the back of strong distribution footprint and power brand strategy, its revenue jumped. It reported a marginal decline of 0.5 per cent in consolidated net profit to INR 292.76 crore for the quarter ended March 2023. This is against a net profit of INR 294.34 crore in the year ago period. However, consolidated revenue for the fourth quarter of 2022-23 reported a 6.4 per cent jump. "Despite the near-term concerns around inflationary pressures, we plan to accelerate the growth momentum by continuing to invest in brand building, innovation and capabilities that will drive future growth. Our journey to sustainable growth is well on track as we focus on building a stronger, more dynamic business, with a renewed sense of purpose," said Mohit Malhotra, CEO, Dabur India.
Colgate-Palmolive: The company reported a 2.27 per cent decline in its net profit to INR 316.22 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, 2023, compared with a net profit of INR 323.57 crore in the same period a year ago. It announced net sales of INR 1,341.7 crore, a rise of 3.7 per cent from INR 1,293.35 crore during the same period the previous year. "We are happy with the sequential progress and outcomes of the quarter. The company has delivered domestic growth of 5.4 per cent, with toothpaste delivering high single digit growth despite continuing sluggish demand trends in the category, especially in rural areas. This has been driven by our strategy to increase consumption, innovation focussed on delivering high quality science-led products and premiumisation. We remain fairly optimistic that the overall category growth will improve in the coming quarters," said Prabha Narasimhan, managing director & CEO of Colgate-Palmolive (India) Limited.
