Dabur's consolidated net profit rises 34% to Rs 377 crore in March quarter

Homegrown FMCG major Dabur India Ltd on Friday reported an increase of 33.98 per cent in consolidated net profit at Rs 377.29 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2021.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 281.60 crore in the January-March quarter a year ago, Dabur India said in a BSE filing.

Its revenue from operations during January-March 2021 jumped 25.27 per cent to Rs 2,336.79 crore, compared with Rs 1,865.36 crore in the year-ago period.

Dabur India CEO Mohit Malhotra said that in a challenging market environment, Dabur has delivered another consecutive quarter of double-digits and sales growth.

"Dabur's financial situation remains strong with a 25.6 per cent growth in our operating profit during the fourth quarter of 2020-21.

"Our India FMCG business led the growth with a 28.3 per cent surge, with an underlying best-ever FMCG volume growth of 25.4 per cent during the fourth quarter of 2020-21," said Malhotra.

Dabur's revenue from the consumer care business segment was up 26.36 per cent to Rs 2,009.63 crore as against Rs 1,590.38 crore in the year-ago period.

Revenue from food business was up 24.93 per cent to Rs 274.14 crore as compared with Rs 219.44 crore in the year-ago period.

However, its retail business was down 18.2 per cent to Rs 23.13 crore from Rs 28.27 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Revenue from other segments was up 17 per cent to Rs 23.95 crore, against Rs 20.47 crore a year ago.

Dabur's international business reported a growth of 19.4 per cent in rupee terms and 21 per cent in constant currency terms.

Dabur India's total expenses was at Rs 1,969.54 crore, up 24.62 per cent as against Rs 1,580.49 crore a year ago.

For the full fiscal year 2020-21, Dabur's net profit was up 17.06 per cent to Rs 1,694.95 crore. It was Rs 1,447.92 crore in the previous year.

Its revenue from operation in the financial year was Rs 9,561.65 crore, up 9.86 per cent. It was Rs 8,703.59 crore in 2019-20.

"Dabur continued to gain market share across all key categories like shampoos, toothpaste, hair oils, chyawanprash and packaged juices and nectars, during the quarter and the full year," the company said in a post-earning statement.

Over the current status, Dabur said the operating environment remains challenging with the emergence of the second and more devastating wave of COVID-19.

"Despite the uncertainty related to the extent and length of the fresh wave, we will respond to the challenges by sharpening focus on our power brands and the ayurvedic healthcare portfolio," Malhotra added. He added the company will also build increased flexibility into its planning and go-to-market strategies to drive profitable growth and gain market share.

Meanwhile, Dabur informed its board in a meeting held on Friday that it has recommended a final dividend of 300 per cent, which is Rs 3 per equity share having a face value of Re 1 each for the financial year 2019-20.

Dabur India Chairman Amit Burman said, "The board has proposed a dividend of Rs 3 per share, aggregating to Rs 530.23 crore."

Shares of Dabur India Ltd on Friday were trading at Rs 538.60 apiece on the BSE, down 1.26 per cent from the previous close.