Dabur India logo.
Credit: X/@DaburIndia
Bengaluru: Fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) maker Dabur India reported a net profit of Rs 522.38 crore for the October-December quarter (Q3FY25) on Thursday, a marginal uptick of nearly 2 per cent from Rs 514.22 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year.
It reported a revenue of Rs 3,355.25 crore, a 3 per cent increase from the Rs 3255.06 crore posted in Q3FY24. "While there has been a persistent moderation in the urban markets, rural markets have shown a strong revival," the company said in a press statement.
Dabur's total income jumped 3 per cent year-on-year to Rs 3,483 crore, while its earnings before income, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) rose 1.8 per cent to Rs 809.9 crore in Q3FY25.
“Our rural distribution network expanded by 15,000 villages this fiscal and today reaches over 131,000 villages, making it amongst the highest in the industry," Chief Executive Officer Mohit Malhotra said.
The numbers are in-line with the company’s expectations of a low single digit revenue growth on the back of delayed and contracted winter.
While its home and personal care segment grew by 5.7 per cent to Rs 1,110 crore, healthcare and beverage portfolio took a major hit due to unfavourable weather, falling by 1.3 per cent to Rs 872 crore and 10.3 per cent to Rs 273 crore, respectively, on a year-on-year basis.
A muted festive season demand and price driven competitive intensity also impacted Dabur’s beverage category. The company is focusing on premiumisation as that portfolio is growing 2.5 to 3 times faster than its overall business in India.
While its sustained a strong growth trajectory through the e-ommerce channels, the bulk of it sales through traditional brick and mortar route has remained stagnant.
Dabur's international business reported strong constant currency growth of 19 per cent during the third quarter, led by Egypt, Middle East and North Africa, US and Bangladesh.
Dabur had also cited inflationary pressures in certain segments for the third quarter, in its quarterly update which were mitigated by price hikes and cost efficiency initiatives.
Prices of tea, palm oil and copra experienced a sharp shoot up in the previous quarter, leading to several consumer goods firms taking a price hike in these items and products.
Its share price ended 3 per cent higher at Rs 533.7 on BSE on Thursday.