PVR Inox To Open 82 Theatres, Reduce Capex Intensity Focus In FY26, Says Sanjeev Bijli

PVR Inox Ltd. is looking to add 82 new screens, according to Executive Director Sanjeev Bijli. The company is looking to build new screens, especially for tier-2 and tier-3 cities.

"Our focus is especially on South Indian cities where demand remains robust," he said. In April, the company opened 20 screens. This includes one each in Noida, Jabalpur, and Raipur, he told NDTV Profit.

"The last quarter and the entire last year were muted and did not go as expected, due to underperformance from Bollywood films—there weren't any films from our major stars like Shah Rukh Khan, Salman Khan, and Aamir Khan," he said.

There was a huge drop in Hollywood releases as well, Bijli said. "Our cinema is spread across the country, and they are situated in demographics where the demand for English movies is very high, such as in metros like South Mumbai, Bengaluru, Delhi, and Mumbai."

Because of the Hollywood strike that happened post-Covid, a large number of Hollywood films, including Mission Impossible 8—which is now releasing on May 17—got shifted, the top executive said. "Since our chain is dependent on a lot of Hollywood films, plus there were fewer Hindi films...admissions were muted."

This year, everything seems to be back on track, be it Hollywood, Hindi films, or regional films. This has continued to contribute to PVR Inox's box office, Bijli said.

"Our internal estimates suggest that this year should be materially better than FY24 and FY25," said Saurabh Pant, VP-finance and investor relations, PVR Inox.

The company has managed to reduce its debt in FY25 by almost Rs 482 crore, he said. "We are looking to de-leverage the balance sheet as quickly as possible," Pant added.

While PVR Inox aims to go back to the admission levels pre-Covid, it is also conscious of its cost structure and is "trying to reduce it as much as possible," Bijli said.

The company wants to reduce capex intensity by following the focus model, where the developer is ready to invest 100% in the multiplex, and an asset light model, where they share the cost of fit-outs, Bijli said.

PVR Inox's consolidated revenue fell 0.5% to Rs 1,249.80 crore in the fourth quarter of fiscal 2025, compared to Rs 1,256.40 crore in the same quarter previous fiscal. The company's net loss is at Rs 125 crore compared to Rs 129.50 crore in the same quarter in previous fiscal.

The company's Ebitda is up 2% to Rs 283.10 crore versus Rs 278.40 crore. While its margin is at 22.7% versus 22.2%.

Shares of PVR Inox closed 4.64% higher at Rs 921.45 apiece, compared to a 3.87% advance at the NSE Nifty 50. The stock has fallen 25.17% in the last 12 months and 26.05% in year-to-date.