Hindustan Unilever surged 4.77% to Rs 487.35 at 14:33 IST on BSE as net profit before exceptional items rose 18% to Rs 781 crore on 12.13% growth in total income from operations to Rs 6465.81 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012.
The company announced Q4 results during trading hours today, 29 April 2013.
Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 75.82 points or 0.39% at 19,362.54.
The stock surged on high volumes. On BSE, 14.40 lakh shares were traded in the counter as against an average daily volume of 1.68 lakh shares in the past one quarter.
The stock hit a high of Rs 492.60 and a low of Rs 457.90 so far during the day. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 579.60 on 16 October 2012. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 406.50 on 5 June 2012.
The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 26 April 2013, sliding 1.55% compared with the Sensex's 3.11% gain. The scrip had, however, outperformed the market in past one quarter, sliding 2.1% as against Sensex's 4.06% fall.
India's largest FMCG company by sales has equity capital of Rs 216.25 crore. Face value per share is Re 1.
Hindustan Lever's net profit rose 15% to Rs 787 crore in Q4 March 2013 over Q4 March 2012. While commodity costs were relatively benign during the quarter, competitive intensity remained at high levels, HUL said. The company said it continued to invest behind its brands. The company's expenditure on Advertising and Promotions (A&P) rose by Rs 144 crore in Q4 March 2013. Despite this step up, profit before interest and tax (PBIT) grew 17% and PBIT margin improved by 60 bps, the company said.
Commenting on the company's performance, Harish Manwani, Chairman, HUL said, "In a challenging environment, we have delivered broad based competitive growth and margin improvement. We have continued to invest in strengthening our brands, stepped up innovation and driven in-market execution and operational efficiencies even harder. At the same time, we are making good progress on our Sustainable Living Plan agenda. While there are near term concerns around slowing market growth and inflationary pressures on consumers, we are confident of the medium to long term growth prospects of the FMCG sector and remain focused on delivering consistent and competitive growth with sustainable operating margin improvement".
HUL said that during the quarter, the domestic consumer business grew at 13% with strong 6% underlying volume growth. Both Home and Personal Care (HPC) and Foods and Beverages (F&B) registered double digit growth in Q4 March 2013, the company said in a statement.
In Q4 March 2013, Skin Cleansing delivered a robust performance with double digit volume growth in Dove, Lux and Lifebuoy. The quarter witnessed price deflation as the benefit of the lower commodity cost was passed on to consumers, HUL said. The liquids portfolio was further strengthened with the relaunch of the Dove Bodywash range, HUL said in a statement.
HUL said that laundry segment maintained its double digit growth across formats in Q4 March 2013. Surf and Rin continue to drive category upgradation, clocking in another quarter of double digit volume growth. Vim led the solid growth in Household Care, HUL said in a statement.
In skin care products, Ponds and Lakme did particularly well in Q4 March 2013, HUL said. Ponds Age Miracle sustained its strong growth momentum while Lakme's growth was driven by the Perfect Radiance range, the company said. Fair & Lovely maintained its strong position albeit in a slowing mass skin lightening segment. The facewash portfolio was further strengthened with two new differentiated offerings -- Lakme Nourishing Glow Clean Up and Ponds White Beauty Tan Removal Scrub, HUL said in a statement.
Hair Care had a very good quarter with strong volume led double digit growth, HUL said. Clinic Plus grew well driven by its relaunch, Sunsilk accelerated through impactful activation and Dove growth was led by a strong performance on bottles, the company said. TRESemmcontinues to gain consumer franchise while the initial response to the Dove Elixir range of premium hair oils has been very positive, HUL said in a statement.
Oral Care registered volume led double digit growth in Q4 March 2013 driven by a further step up in both Close Up and Pepsodent, the company said. A range of premium toothbrushes were launched under Pepsodent Expert Protection, HUL said in a statement.
In the beverages category, the packaged tea segment delivered another strong performance with double digit growth across all key brands in Q4 March 2013. Actions taken over time to strengthen the core, extend distribution, deploy engaging activation and market development for tea bags has helped step up growth in this category. In Coffee, Bru sustained its growth momentum, HUL said in a statement.
With regard to the packaged foods segment, Kissan Ketchups maintained its double digit growth path while growth accelerated on the Knorr soups portfolio in Q4 March 2013, HUL said. The initial response to the Soupy Noodles relaunch in the last quarter has been encouraging. Ice Creams grew modestly impacted by a slowdown in the market, the company said in a statement.
HUL's net profit surged 41.06% to Rs 3796.67 crore on 16.7% growth in total income from operations to Rs 25810.21 crore in the year ended 31 March 2013 (FY 2013) over the year ended 31 March 2012 (FY 2012). Profit after tax but before exceptional items, grew 28% to Rs 3314 crore in FY 2013 over FY 2012.
HUL's consolidated net profit jumped 37.2% to Rs 3828.98 crore on 15.22% growth in total income from operations to Rs 27003.99 crore in FY 2013 over FY 2012.
In FY 2013, domestic consumer business grew by 16% with 7% underlying volume growth. All segments grew in double digits. Profit before interest and tax (PBIT) grew by 23% with PBIT margin improving 80 bps.
HUL's board of directors at a meeting held today, 29 April 2013, recommended final dividend of Rs 6 per share for FY 2013.
HUL is India's largest FMCG company in terms of sales with over 35 brands spanning 20 distinct categories such as soaps, detergents, shampoos, skin care, toothpastes, deodorants, cosmetics, tea, coffee, packaged foods, ice cream, and water purifiers. HUL is a subsidiary of Unilever Plc, one of the world's leading suppliers of fast moving consumer goods with strong local roots in more than 100 countries across the globe.
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