Varun Beverages reports 50 pc hike in Q1 profit to Rs 60 crore

Varun Beverages Ltd (VBL), a key player in the beverage industry and one of the largest franchisee of PepsiCo worldwide, said on Tuesday its consolidated profit after tax moved up by 50 per cent to Rs 60 crore for the January to March quarter on the back of robust volume growth across domestic and international markets.On the outlook, Varun Beverages said though the demand in domestic and international markets is curtailed, it is expected to get normal in the near term.

Varun Beverages Ltd (VBL), a key player in the beverage industry and one of the largest franchisee of PepsiCo worldwide, said on Tuesday its consolidated profit after tax moved up by 50 per cent to Rs 60 crore for the January to March quarter on the back of robust volume growth across domestic and international markets.

The company, which follows calendar year as its financial year, had posted a net profit of Rs 40 crore in January to March last year.

Revenue from operations grew 23.3 per cent year-on-year to Rs 1,676 crore as compared to Rs 1,359 crore while total sales volumes were up 26.2 per cent at 11.4 crore unit cases in Q1 2020 as compared to 9 crore unit cases in Q1 2019.

The earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased by 24.2 per cent to Rs 271 crore in Q1 2020 from Rs 218 crore in Q1 2019.

"We started the new fiscal year on a strong note with healthy demand and robust volume growth across our domestic and international markets. This enabled us to deliver a topline growth of 23.3 per cent, EBITDA growth of 24.2 per cent, and PAT growth of 50 per cent during the quarter," said Chairman Ravi Jaipuria.

In the last 10 days of March, a country-wide lockdown and similar restrictions in many other countries moderated the company's performance for the period which would have otherwise been even better, he said in a statement.

On the outlook, Varun Beverages said though the demand in domestic and international markets is curtailed, it is expected to get normal in the near term.

"While we are currently witnessing curtailed demand both in India and in our international geographies as a result of the ongoing macro-situation, we believe that in the near-term there should be a gradual bounce back in volumes," said Jaipuria.

"This will be enabled by easing of lockdown restrictions and restoration of consumer sentiment as they will once again have normal access to beverage purchases," he said.

( With inputs from ANI )