RIL PAT slides 4% YoY to Rs 17,448 crore in Q1 FY25

Reliance Industries' consolidated net profit declined 4.04% to Rs 17,448 crore in Q1 FY25 as against Rs 18,182 crore posted in Q1 FY24.

Gross revenue rose by 11.55% year on year (YoY) to Rs 257,823 crore in the quarter ended 30 June 2024, led by O2C on higher oil & product prices and oil & gas segment with strong growth in volumes. Steady growth in consumer businesses also contributed to increase in revenue.

EBITDA grew 2% YoY to Rs 42,748 crore during the June 2024 quarter, led by strong contribution from oil & gas and consumer business offset weak O2C.

Finance costs rose 1.4% YoY to Rs 5,918 crore primarily due to higher interest rates. Depreciation spiked 15.5% YoY to Rs 13,596 crore due to expanded asset base across all the businesses, higher network utilization in digital services business, higher retail store count and ramp-up in upstream production.

The capital expenditure for the quarter ended 30 June 2024 was at Rs 28,785 crore.

Mukesh D. Ambani, chairman and managing director, Reliance Industries, Consolidated EBITDA for the quarter improved from a year ago with strong contribution from Consumer and Upstream businesses offsetting weak O2C operating environment. Reliances resilient operating and financial performance in this quarter underscores the strength of its diverse portfolio of businesses. Importantly, these businesses are contributing significantly to Indias growth, providing vital energy and vibrant channels for digital and physical distribution of goods and services.

The digital services business registered an impressive financial performance year-on-year, continuing its positive growth momentum. Jios True 5G network, covering ~85% of Indias 5G capacity, continues to attract users, while the fixed broadband offerings are witnessing increasing consumer traction both in homes and enterprises. The attractive value proposition offered by Jio is enabling more Indians to transition to next-gen data networks. This is further accelerating the digital revolution which is reshaping communications, analytics and computing, media and entertainment and commerce in India. Jio is committed to provide the best-quality state-of-the-art network at most affordable prices globally.

Retail business delivered robust financial results, as compared to last year, well supported by all consumption baskets. With fast-paced expansion of its retail footprint, Reliance Retail continues to cement its position as the preferred retailer for millions of Indians. The digital and new commerce segments are also scaling up rapidly. Reliance Retail is focused not only on providing quality products to customers, but also on enhancing overall customer experience, both during and after sales.

The deep integration and flexibility built into our O2C business model helped mitigate the impact of challenging operating environment. The business was impacted by lower fuel cracks with tepid global demand and ramp-up of new refineries. The oil and gas segment continued its growth trajectory with higher production, offsetting lower year-on-year gas price realizations.

Reliance has made significant progress on the implementation of New Energy Giga-factories. On completion, these projects will provide India a world-class, integrated green energy ecosystem which can propel the next leg of sustainable growth.

JIO PLATFORMS:

Consolidated Jio Platforms (JPL) net profit rose 11.67% to Rs 5,693 crore on 12.77% increase in revenue from operations to Rs 29,449 crore in Q1 FY25 over Q1 FY24. Revenue growth was primarily driven by robust subscriber growth across mobility and homes.

EBITDA stood at Rs 14,638 crore, up 11.6% YoY primarily led by healthy revenue growth and operating leverage.

During the quarter, average revenue per user (ARPU) rose to Rs 181.7 from Rs 180.5 reported in Q1 FY24, supported by better subscriber mix, partially offset by increasing mix of promotional 5G traffic being offered on an unlimited basis to subscribers and not charged separately.

Total customer base as on 30 June 2024 was at 489.7 million, up 9.2% YoY. Total data traffic was 44.1 billion GB during the quarter, registering a growth of 32.8% on YoY basis. Total voice traffic was 1.42 trillion minutes during the quarter; 6.6% growth YoY.

Jio stated that it continued to lead the industry and gain subscriber share with 8 million net additions in Q1 FY25. Monthly churn was 1.7%.

Akash M Ambani, chairman, Reliance Jio Infocomm, said, Ubiquitous, high-quality, affordable internet is the backbone of Digital India and Jio takes pride in contributing to this. Our new prepaid plans would foster industry innovation towards 5G and AI and drive sustainable growth. Jio with its superior network and new service propositions would further build its market leadership with a customer first approach.

RELIANCE RETAIL:

Consolidated Reliance Retail net profit rose marginally to Rs 2,453 crore in Q1 FY25 from Rs 2,448 crore posted in Q1 FY24. Revenue from operations increased 6.6% to Rs 66,260 crore in Q1 FY25 over Q1 FY24.

The business delivered steady performance during the quarter with revenue of Rs 75,615 crore, up 8.1% YoY.

Reported EBITDA stood at Rs 5,664 crore which was up by 10.5% YoY, led by increase in footfalls and expansion of store footprint, streamlining of operations driving margin improvement.

The business expanded its store network with 331 new store openings taking the total store count to 18,918 with area under operation at 81.3 million sq. ft. The quarter recorded footfalls of over 296 million, a growth of 18.9% YoY.

The focus on scaling up Digital Commerce and New Commerce continued with these channels contributing to 18% of total revenue.

Consumer Electronics business growth led by customer walk-ins and increasing average bill value. JioMart Digital business growth was driven across categories. The business expanded its merchant base by 14% YoY.

Under Fashion & Lifestyle business, AJIO delivered steady performance as it expanded its product catalogue by over 20% compared to last year and added over 1.9 million customers. AJIO Luxe delivered robust growth with options count increasing by 39% YoY and brand portfolio crossing 700 brands.

With customers continuing to enjoy their shopping in new formats for their fashion needs, business has been scaling up new formats such as Yousta, Azorte, GAP etc. Jewelry delivered steady growth driven by launch of multiple new collections led by Vindhya for Akshay Tritiya and Vivaham wedding collection.

Grocery delivered another quarter of steady growth led by big box formats and expansion in Tier 2 and beyond cities. Grocery New Commerce business continued to expand its kirana partner base as Metro format scaled with 30 new store openings taking the count to over 200 stores with presence across 180+ cities.

JioMart delivered steady performance with average bill value growing by 16% YoY. Notably, the non-grocery categories continue to do well with >50% growth in average bill value led by consumer electronics.

Consumer brands continued to deliver growth across categories as it deepens its presence in general trade channel which delivered 150%+ YoY revenue growth.

Isha M Ambani, executive director, Reliance Retail Ventures, said Reliance Retail delivered resilient performance during the period and strengthened its position as India's foremost retailer. The steady expansion and growth of our retail business not only signifies our commitment to customer centricity but also mirrors the resilience and vitality of the Indian growth narrative. We continue to make strides in delivering better retail experiences for our customers as we embrace innovation to improve products, processes, and platforms along with integrating advanced technologies.

OIL TO CHEMICALS (O2C):

O2C quarterly revenue stood at Rs 157,133 crore, up 18.1% YoY primarily on account of higher product prices tracking 9% increase in Brent crude oil prices, and higher volumes supported by strong domestic demand.

EBITDA for Q1 FY25 reduced 14.3% YoY to Rs 13,093 crore, due to lower transportation fuel cracks, particularly gasoline cracks which was down 30% YoY. Downstream chemical margins were also lower on YoY basis PE (-17%), PP (-16%) and Polyester Chain deltas (-15%).

Total Throughput rose to 19.8 MMT in June 2024 quarter from 19.7 MMT posted in corresponding quarter previous year.

OIL AND GAS (EXPLORATION & PRODUCTION):

Q2 FY24 revenue was higher by 33.4% YoY to Rs 6,179, mainly on account of higher volumes partly offset by lower price realisation from KG D6 and CBM Field.

The average price realised for KG D6 gas was $9.27/MMBTU in Q1 FY25 vis-vis $10.81/MMBTU in Q1 FY24. The average price realised for CBM gas was $11.59/MMBTU in Q1 FY25 vis-vis $14.15/MMBTU in Q1 FY24.

EBITDA increased to Rs 5,210 crore which is up by 29.8% on YoY basis. EBITDA margin was at 84.3% for Q1 FY25.

MEDIA BUSINESS:

The media business' quarterly revenue stood at Rs 3,141 crore, down 3% YoY, due to IPL revenue being distributed across two quarters this year. Driven by the strong position of the News portfolio across markets and election-linked advertising tailwinds, the business delivered industry-leading ad growth of +30% YoY. Entertainment revenue was down 5.5% YoY, as IPL matches were held in Q4 FY24 and Q1 FY25.

Network18s TV News bouquet maintained its leadership as the highest reach news network in the country, connecting with over 200 million 1 people on a weekly basis. The networks all-India viewership share of 11.3% was 40bps higher on QoQ basis, driven by its unparalleled 360 coverage of general elections.

Under Viacom18, IPL 2024 was a huge success on JioCinema, reaching 620 million viewers, a growth of 38% YoY. The platform launched subscription new plans with premium content and ad-free viewing, at a monthly subscription fee of Rs 29 / month and Rs 89 / month (family plan). The disruptive pricing led to a sharp uptick in the subscriber base, making JioCinema the fastest growing subscription OTT during the quarter.

RIL is India's largest private sector company. Its activities span hydrocarbon exploration and production, petroleum refining and marketing, petrochemicals, renewables (solar and hydrogen), retail and digital services.

The scrip declined 1.92% to end at Rs 3,109.50 on Friday, 19 July 2024.

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