Biscuit maker Britannia Industries on June 2 reported a consolidated profit of Rs 374.75 crore for March quarter, registering a 26.1 percent year-on-year growth driven by lower tax cost (down 45 percent YoY).
Company had posted profit at Rs 297.23 crore in corresponding period last fiscal.
Revenue from operations for the quarter grew by 2.5 percent year-on-year to Rs 2,867.7 crore as sales volumes took a beating due to the nationwide lockdown.
"After 9 months of moderate growth, we started to see growths coming back in the first 2 months of this quarter which was then hit by COVID-19 & lockdown in March impacting the revenue & net profit growth by an estimated 7-10 percent," Varun Berry, Managing Director said.
In lockdown period, Berry said company continued to garner market share through focus on the building blocks of distribution, diligence in marketplace & brand building through focussed product campaigns.
On the operating front, company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased 4.1 percent YoY to Rs 454.28 crore and margin expanded 24 basis points to 15.84 percent in quarter ended March 2020 compared to year-ago.
"Our drive on cost efficiencies, reduction in wastages and ability to leverage fixed costs helped us improve the shape of business and record increase in operating profit during the quarter despite the COVID-19 pandemic," Berry said.
About first quarter of FY21, company said it witnessed a revenue growth of 20 percent in April and 28 percent in May 2020 versus the corresponding months in the previous year.
Meanwhile, in April, the company declared an interim dividend of Rs 35 per share for the financial year 2019-20.
The stock gained 17 percent in past year and rose 14 percent year-to-date (2020), but lost 11 percent in March quarter due to sharp sell-off in March month due to COVID-19-led lockdown.
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