Britannia net up 28%

Britannia Industries today reported a 28 per cent rise in third-quarter net profit at Rs 37.3 crore on higher net sales. It had posted a net profit of Rs 29.1 crore in the year-ago quarter.

This is the first time the company has reported growth in net profit in this financial year. In the first two quarters, it had reported 30 per cent drop in net profit. Experts attributed the growth to increased efficiency and sales. Net sales rose 22.5 per cent to Rs 1,080 crore from Rs 881.4 crore in the year-ago quarter. Operating profit jumped 46 per cent to Rs 47.5 crore in the three months to December.

“The company has maintained its growth trajectory in an intensely competitive market and continued to drive innovation in the industry with the launch of ‘NutriChoice’,” Vinita Bali, managing director of Britannia Industries, said.

She said the company entered a new segment during the quarter, with the phased launch of Britannia Healthy Start, ready-to-eat breakfast mixes.

Raw material expenditure rose 28 per cent to Rs 611.6 crore. “We will continue to focus on cost reduction and driving consumer off-take to generate profitable growth,” Bali added.