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Britannia Q4 Results: Net Profit Falls After Six Quarters

Net profit fell 3% year-on-year to Rs 364.32 crore in the quarter ended March.

Britannia biscuits on display in a shop. (Photo: BloombergQuint)
Britannia biscuits on display in a shop. (Photo: BloombergQuint)

Britannia Industries Ltd.’s profit for the three months through March fell after six quarters amid rising input costs and a shutdown last month to implement three digital projects.

Net profit of the maker of Good Day and Tiger biscuits declined 3% year-on-year to Rs 364.32 crore in the quarter ended March, according to its exchange filing. That compares with the Rs 416.9-crore consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.

Other Highlights (YoY)

  • Revenue rose 9% to Rs 3,130.75 crore against the estimated Rs 3,109.2 crore.
  • Operating profit increased 11% to Rs 505.39 crore.
  • Operating margin expanded to 16.1% from 15.8%, missing the consensus forecast of 18.16%.

The company implemented three transformational digital projects in the quarter ended March—S4 HANA, an online dealer management system and an integrated vendor management system. “The delivery of these projects necessitated shutdown of operations for a few days in March which impacted primary billing for the quarter,” said Varun Berry, the company’s managing director.

Costs of key raw materials, including palm oil, packing material and dairy products, witnessed a sudden and steep increase while strategic buying helped the company manage cost hikes better, according to Berry. “We’re evaluating the long-term impact of these increases to action necessary price increases while ensuring competitiveness.”

Among the consumer goods firms on the Nifty 50 that have announced their earnings for the quarter ended March, Nestle India Ltd.’s profit and revenue rose amid higher domestic sales.

Shares of Britannia ended flat before the results were announced compared with a 1.16% gain in the Nifty 50.