HUL Q4 profit up 9.7% to ₹2,552 cr on strong topline growth

Hindustan Unilever Limited (HUL) on April 27 reported a 9.7% year-on-year increase in its net profit at ₹2,552 crore in the January-March quarter, as compared to ₹2,327 crore in the same period last year. The company's revenue from operations surged 10.6% to ₹15,053 crore as compared to ₹13,584 crore in the year-ago period.

"HUL delivered strong performance with turnover growth of 11% and Underlying Volume Growth of 4%. Growth was competitive with more than 75% of the business winning market shares," the company said in a stock exchange filing.

The FMCG major's EBITDA and margin for the said quarter stood at ₹3,471 crore, up 7%, and 23.3%, down 24.1%, respectively.

"In challenging circumstances of geopolitical uncertainties, high commodity inflation and tepid market growths, I am pleased that we have delivered yet another year of strong and resilient performance. We have added ₹8,000 crore to our topline in this fiscal with volume growth in mid-single digits despite a decline in FMCG market volumes. We continue to make steady progress in future-proofing our business through portfolio transformation and building distinctive capabilities," said Sanjiv Mehta, CEO and MD, HUL.

The company's board has recommended a final dividend of ₹22 for the financial year ended 31st March 2023, on equity shares of Re 1/- each. It earlier paid an interim dividend of ₹17/- per share on 17th November 2022. Thus, the total dividend for the said period amounts to ₹39/- per equity share.

For the whole financial year ending March 31, 2023, the company’s turnover was ₹58,154 crore against the turnover of ₹50,336 crore for the financial year ended March 31, 2022.

The profit for FY23 stood at ₹9,962 crore as compared to ₹8,818 crore in the previous year, while EPS at ₹42 per share was up 13%.

In the company's FY24 guidance, the HUL CEO said the near-term operating environment is likely to remain “volatile”. With inflation easing due to the lapping of high base and sequential softening in a few commodities, price and volume growths will rebalance, he said.

"Market volumes will recover gradually as consumption habits readjust. We remain focused on managing our business with agility and growing our consumer franchise whilst maintaining margins in a healthy range. We stay confident of the medium to long-term potential of the Indian FMCG sector and HUL’s ability to deliver consistent, competitive, profitable and responsible growth," he said.

Among different segments, home care saw better performance with 19% revenue growth. "Both fabric wash and household care grew in strong double digits. The premium portfolio continued to outperform driven by effective market development actions," said the company.

In beauty & personal care, the company saw broad-based double-digit growth at 10% as skin cleansing delivered double-digit growth led by Lux, and with softening in palm oil, further price reductions were taken in the soap portfolio. In foods and refreshments, 3% growth was seen, with tea strengthening its value and volume market leadership.

The HUL stock is down 1.6% at ₹2,470.75 crore today as compared to the previous session close of ₹2,510.8 on the BSE.