Hindustan Unilever has announced an overall beat for the quarter ending March, as per an exchange filing on Thursday. The company reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 2,992 crore versus an estimate of Rs 2,658 crore. Revenue for the fourth quarter is reported to be Rs 16,351 crore versus an estimate of Rs 16,279 crore.
The company has also recorded its largest volume growth in 15 quarters, at 6%.
Segmentally, HUL saw a 9% growth in the Home Care category, 8% growth in Beauty & Wellness, and 5% growth in Personal Care and Foods each.
HUL Q4 Results (Cons, YoY)
- Net Profit at Rs 2,992 crore versus estimate of Rs 2,658 crore
- Revenue at Rs 16,351 crore versus estimate of Rs 16,279 crore
- EBITDA at Rs 3,841 crore versus an estimate of Rs 3,754 crore
- EBITDA Margin at 23.5% versus an estimate of 23.1%
Profit after tax rose 21.4% year-on-year to Rs 2,992 crore, compared with Rs 2,464 crore a year earlier. Revenue increased 7.6% YoY to Rs 16,351 crore, up from Rs 15,190 crore in the same period last year. The company reported a one-time gain of Rs 247 crore, reversing a loss of Rs 134 crore last year.
EBITDA grew year-on-year to Rs 3,841 crore. EBITDA margin stood at 23.5%, compared with 23.8% a year earlier. It has also announced a final dividend of Rs 22, subject to approval at the board meeting with the record date fixed at June 23.
Morgan Stanley, in a first cut view, has maintained an Equal-Weight rating with a target price of Rs 2,372, implying a modest upside, with estimates larely unchanged.
The brokerage believes that this was a steady quarter with slight beat, but margin pressure persists. They add that the story remains with gradual recovery and stable demand, and no sharp re-rating trigger yet.
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