Hindustan Unilever settles 3% higher on strong Dec quarter numbers

Shares of Hindustan Unilever Ltd defied the muted broader market trend and surged as much as 3 per cent on Friday after the FMCG major reported strong December quarter earnings.

On BSE, the stock opened at Rs 2,282.00, then jumped 3.15 per cent and touched an intra-day high of Rs 2,333.05 during the session. It finally settled at Rs 2,322.20, up 2.68 per cent.

On NSE, the stock opened at Rs 2,264.80, then gained further ground during the day and finally ended the day at Rs 2,330, registering a gain of 3.02 per cent over its last close.

On Thursday, Hindustan Unilever Ltd reported an 18.68 per cent increase in consolidated net profit to Rs 2,300 crore for the third quarter ended December 2021. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 1,938 crore in the October-December period of the previous fiscal.

"HUL delivered a resilient performance both on revenue and margins front despite the headwinds to rural demand and persistent material cost inflation.

"While volume growth looks soft at 2 per cent, it was well ahead of industry growth, which saw a decline. Margin improvement despite the gross margin pressure was commendable," YES Securities said in a research note.

Revenue from sales during the quarter under review stood at Rs 13,196 crore, up 10.25 per cent, against Rs 11,969 crore in the corresponding period a year ago, Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) said in a regulatory filing.

HUL's total expenses were at Rs 10,329 crore in Q3 FY 2021-22, up 8.18 per cent from Rs 9,548 crore earlier.

"Business fundamentals remained strong with handsome market share gains in all our divisions, both urban and rural markets and across price segments. Underlying Volume Growth at 2 per cent was significantly ahead of the market," HUL said in a post-earnings statement.