Tata Consumer Products Ltd.‘s first-quarter profit missed estimates on a one-time loss even as cost cuts aided its margin.
Net profit attributable to shareholders of the maker of Tata Tea and Tata Salt rose 243.5% sequentially to Rs 185.1 crore in the quarter ended June, according to its exchange filing. That compares with the Rs 205.9-crore consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.
The company reported an exceptional item amounting to Rs 63.9 crore.
Highlights (QoQ)
Revenue fell 0.9% to Rs 3,008.5 crore, compared with the estimated Rs 3,093.4 crore.
Operating profit rose 33.1% to Rs 399.5 crore, against the Rs 380.3-crore forecast.
Margin expanded to 13.3% from 9.9%. Analysts had pegged the metric at 12.3%.
Operating margin expanded aided by lower expenses, including a 26.9% sequential fall in advertising expenses.
Among the consumer goods makers on the Nifty 50 that have so far announced earnings for the April-June quarter, Nestle India Ltd., and Hindustan Unilever Ltd. saw their margin narrow over the preceding three months as commodity costs rose, while Britannia Industries Ltd.’s remained steady. India’s largest consumer goods maker said it would need to navigate the next couple of quarters of “very high inflation”. Nestle India, too, highlighted rising commodity prices across oils and packaging materials. Britannia, too, witnessed an increase in the prices of palm oil and crude.
Shares of Tata Consumer closed 0.9% higher before the results were announced compared with a 1.5% rise in the benchmark Nifty 50.
