ITC Q3 net jumps 20.6% - The Times of India
January 19, 2013
Tobacco-to-FMCG major ITC has witnessed a 20.6% jump in net profit in the third quarter of this fiscal. It has posted a net profit of Rs 2,051crore in the quarter ended December 31, 2012, from Rs 1,700 crore earned in the year ago period.
The healthy double-digit growth was fuelled by tobacco, agri and paperboard business while the new FMCG segment has cut down losses from Rs 46.6 crore to Rs 23.98 crore. The profit from agri business was up from Rs 141 crore to Rs 172 crore. However, the profit from hotel business was down from Rs 101 crore to Rs 55 crore.
Driven primarily by branded packaged foods, personal care, agri business and cigarettes, the company registered a turnover jump of 22.9% to Rs 10,824 crore in the third quarter of 2012-13 from Rs 8,808 crore in the year-ago period. An official pointed out that the non-tobacco FMCG business of ITC posted a robust revenue growth of 30.1% to Rs 1,782 crore during the quarter. Agri and paperboard businesses registered a turnover of Rs 1,630 crore and Rs 1,061 crore respectively.
"The stellar performance is remarkable when viewed against the backdrop of the challenging business environment in which it was achieved, namely, a slowdown in economic growth, sustained high inflation and impact of the steep hike in taxes on cigarettes during the year," a company statement said.
According to officials, the branded packaged foods business recorded significant growth during the quarter across all categories boosted by strong volume growth and an enriched product mix. "Sunfeast biscuits sustained its robust growth trajectory and augmented its differentiated and innovative product portfolio with the addition of new variants," added officials.
