ITC Ltd. on Monday reported a 33.46% rise in consolidated net profit to ₹4,462.25 crore for the April-June quarter following ‘good’ performance by its business verticals.
Revenue from operations rose 39.25% to ₹19,831.27 crore.
"Robust performance continues across segments," ITC said in an earnings statement.
ITC's total expenses grew 38.95% to ₹14,201.51 crore.
Economic activity during the quarter gathered further momentum with an uptick in business and consumer sentiment, said the Kolkata-headquartered company.
“However, geopolitical tensions and persistent supply chain disruptions resulted in hardening of commodity prices, exacerbating the unprecedented inflationary conditions prevailing in the economy,. said ITC. “Inflationary headwinds also manifested in subdued consumption expenditure with volumes coming under pressure, particularly in rural markets,” it added.
During the quarter, revenue from the 'total FMCG' segment, which includes cigarettes, grew 25.05% to ₹11,922.81 crore.
Revenue from the cigarettes business expaned 28.63% to ₹7,464.10 crore in the April-June quarter of this fiscal.
This was helped by "stability in taxes on cigarettes, backed by deterrent actions by enforcement agencies," which enabled green shoots of volume recovery from illicit trade, said ITC.
ITC’s revenue from the ‘FMCG-others’ segment grew 19.49% to ₹4,458.71 crore.
This was led by a "robust growth in discretionary/Out-Of-Home categories" and its staples and convenience foods remained resilient.
ITC’s FMCG-others segment consists of branded packaged foods such as staples, snacks, meals, dairy and beverages, confections, apparel, education and stationery products, personal care products, safety matches and incense sticks.
"FMCG EBITDA margin sustained (-20 bps y-o-y) despite unprecedented inflationary headwinds," said ITC, adding it was even up 190 bps over Q1 of FY 2019-20.
ITC, which has brands including Aashirvaad, Sunfeast, Bingo, Fiama, Vivel and Classmate, said the escalation in input costs was mitigated through multi-pronged interventions as strategic cost management, premiumisation, supply chain agility, judicious pricing actions, fiscal incentives, leveraging digital, optimising channel assortments and favourable business mix.
Revenue from ITC's hotels segment jumped fourfold to ₹580.71 crore in comparison with a lower base of the pandemic-impacted corresponding quarter.
ITC Hotel's revenue expanded 41.4% over the pre-pandemic Q1 of FY2019-20, it added in the statement.
In the April-June quarter, the ARR (average room rent) and Occupancy were "ahead of pre-pandemic levels".
"Retail (packages), Leisure, Weddings & MICE segments (Meetings, Incentives, Conferences and Exhibitions) drive growth," said ITC.
Moreover, higher Revenue Per Available Room (RevPAR) and structural interventions boosted EBITDA margins to 32.5%.
Its agribusiness was up 82.29% to ₹7,492.14 crore during the period under review, which was driven by wheat, rice and leaf tobacco exports.
ITC's revenue from 'Paperboards, paper and packaging' segment was at $2,267.22 crore, up 43.25% from ₹1,582.65 crore earlier.
The segment has "strong demand across end-user segments" and its sustainable products portfolio continues to be scaled up, said ITC.
"Packaging and Printing Business witnessed robust growth in domestic and export segments across Cartons & Flexibles platforms," it said.
Revenue from other segments, which includes its Information technology services, branded residences etc, was up 8.17% to ₹735.84 crore.
Commenting on the outlook, ITC said: "While the trajectory of inflation remains a key monitorable, prospects of a favourable monsoon and the recent moderation in prices of key commodities along with proactive interventions by the Government and RBI augur well for sustained economic recovery and a pick-up in consumption expenditure".
Shares of ITC Ltd on Monday settled at ₹307.55 on BSE, up 1.52% from the previous close.
