Dabur net up 21% on strong volume growth

Consolidated net sales grew 10.2% to Rs 1,945 crore for the period

Aided by strong volume growth, Ghaziabad-headquartered Dabur India reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 285 crore for the quarter ended March 2015, a rise of 21 per cent over the year-ago period.

Consolidated net sales grew 10 per cent to Rs 1,945 crore for the period, with 12 per cent growth in its domestic fast-moving consumer goods (FMCG) business, which gives the company about 70 per cent of its revenue. The international business grew nine per cent.

More important, volume growth for the quarter (domestic FMCG) was eight per cent. Health supplements, digestives, skin care and foods, all showed strong growth.

Foods, for instance, grew nearly 20 per cent for the quarter, while skin care grew nearly 17 per cent and health supplements by 13 per cent. Digestives grew 11 per cent.

"Our Ebitda (earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation) margin saw 17 per cent growth. Our focus will be on an aggressive and profitable growth strategy. We will continue to invest behind our brands and on market expansion, with a series of new product launches in the coming quarter,” said chief executive Sunil Duggal.

The company ended the full year with net sales of Rs 7,806 crore, growth of 10.7 per cent. Net profit was Rs 1,066 crore, up 16.6 per cent over the year-ago period. Dabur’s retail business, under the NewU brand, reported 30 per cent revenue growth in the year, the company said.

The Dabur stock closed trade on Tueday at Rs 264 on the BSE exchange, up almost one per cent over the previous day's close. It touched an intra-day high of Rs 266.85 and a low of Rs 261.50.