PVR-Inox Q1 Results: Loss Narrows As Revenue Rises Beating Estimates

PVR Inox Ltd.'s first quarter loss narrowed sequentially as revenue rose, beating analysts' estimates.

The country's largest multiplex operator posted a net loss of Rs 81.6 crore in the quarter ended June, as against a loss of Rs 333.4 crore in the previous quarter, according to its exchange filing. That compares with the Rs 72.66 crore consensus loss estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.

The year-on-year figures would not be comparable due to PVR's consolidation with Inox Leisure. However, this is the second quarter in a row that the company has reported a loss.

PVR-Inox Q1 FY24 (Consolidated, Quarter-On-Quarter)

• Revenue rose 14% to Rs 1,304.9 crore. (Bloomberg estimate: Rs 1244.3 crore)

• Ebitda is up 34% to Rs 352.5 crore. (Bloomberg estimate: Rs 336.7 crore)

• The margin stood at 27% against 23.1%. (Bloomberg estimate: 27.06%)

• Total expenses rose 5% to Rs 1438 crore.

The first quarter of fiscal 2024 saw the release of the highest number of Hollywood movies post pandemic.

"The exceptional performance of Hollywood movies both in terms of the increase in number of releases year-on-year and the box office collections during the quarter reinforces our belief in consumers love for theater-going," said Ajay Bijli, managing director at PVR Inox. Box office collections for Hollywood films rose 70% over the previous quarter, the company said.

The quarter saw a muted start in April, with limited movie releases in Hindi. The box office, however, picked up in May with the release of, ‘The Kerala Story', which turned out to be the biggest release of this quarter along with other super-hits like ‘Fast X' and ‘Guardians of the Galaxy Vol. 3' from Hollywood, and ‘2018' from the Malayalam film industry.

The momentum continued in June with the release of ‘Adipurush' even though the movie did not do well post its first weekend. Other movies that delivered a good show were ‘The Flash', ‘Spiderman: Across the Spiderverse', and ‘Transformers: Rise of the Beasts' from Hollywood.

Regional movies like ‘Carry on Jatta 3' in Punjabi and ‘Baipan Bhari Deva' in Marathi, which were released towards the end of the quarter, have achieved record-breaking success, the company said.

Bijli said that the Bollywood box office has shown a gradual reduction in sequential volatility, suggesting a growing appetite for fresh content among the moviegoers. He hopes to see a rising trend in box office collections across genres for the rest of the year amid a robust line-up of content.

Other Highlights

• Average ticket price and average spend per head rose to Rs 246 from Rs 239, and Rs 130 from Rs 119 in the previous quarter, respectively, in the April-June period.

• The occupancy rate for PVR Inox was flat at 22.3% quarter-on-quarter.

• Total number of admits rose 11% to 33.9 million.

• Sale of movie tickets went up 15% to Rs 694.5 crore.

• Sale of food and beverages rose 22% to Rs 427.7 crore.

• Advertisement income fell 2% to Rs 89.3 crore.

During the quarter, PVR INOX opened 31 new screens in five cinemas. It exited 14 underperforming screens across four cinemas, which the company said was in line with its focus on profitable growth.

"These planned exits form part of the guidance we had given in the last quarter," the company said in a statement.

As on June 30, the company' total screen count stands at 1,707 across 361 cinemas in 114 cities in India and Sri Lanka.

Net debt of PVR-Inox stood at Rs 1,507.3 crore as of June 30, up 5.4% over the previous quarter.

Shares of PVR-Inox closed 0.51% higher on Tuesday after the results were announced, compared to a 0.1% decline in the benchmark Nifty 50.