Hindustan Petroleum Corp.'s quarterly profit rose beating estimates as other income jumped and tax expenses fell.
The oil refiner's net profit increased 7% sequentially to Rs 1,923.5 crore in the quarter ended September, according to its exchange filing. That compares with the Rs 1,676.6-crore consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.
Highlights (QoQ)
Revenue rose 14.7% to Rs 83,064.5 crore, against the Rs 77,564.9-crore forecast.
Operating profit fell 5.6% to Rs 3,013.6 crore.
Other income increased 20.8% to Rs 449.4 crore.
Operating margin contracted to 3.6% from 4.4%.
Total tax expenses fell 27.3% to Rs 437.7 crore.
Gross refining margin—what a company earns by converting one barrel of crude into fuel—stood at an average of $2.87 a barrel between April-September 2021 compared with $2.58 a year ago.
The company's refining margin was supported by an increase in benchmark GRM and improved product spreads. Benchmark Singapore GRM rose 76% sequentially to $3.7 a barrel in the second quarter.
Higher crude oil prices, too, led to inventory gains. Brent crude averaged at $73.2 a barrel, a 5.9% rise over the preceding quarter, Bloomberg data showed. Petrol, diesel and jet fuel spreads jumped 20%, 2%, and 16% sequentially.
Sales volumes rose 4% quarter-on-quarter to 8.79 million metric tonnes, supported by higher demand for petroleum products after pandemic-related restrictions were eased. Crude throughput rose 0.8% to 2.53 MMT.
India's overall consumption of petroleum products rose 2.5% sequentially to 48.42 MMT in the quarter ended September, data from Petroleum Planning and Analysis Cell showed.
Prices of petrol and diesel were increased 2.9% and 0.9%, respectively, between July 1 and Sept. 30, compared with a 3.5% rise in Brent crude price.
Shares of HPCL were trading 1.03% lower after the results were announced compared with a 0.11% fall in the BSE Sensex.
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