Jagran Prakashan Q2 profit jumps two-fold to Rs 125.78 cr

Jagran Prakashan, the publisher of Hindi daily Dainik Jagran, on Wednesday reported over two-fold jump in its consolidated profit after tax to Rs 125.78 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, helped by deferred tax liabilities.

The company had posted a profit after tax of Rs 44.87 crore during July-September quarter a year ago, Jagran Prakashan Ltd (JPL) said in a BSE filing.

However, its revenue from operations was slipped 7.03 per cent to Rs 514.49 crore during the quarter under review, as against Rs 553.44 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago.

JPL's total expenses was at Rs 468.41 crore during the quarter, compared to Rs 490.23 crore, down 4.45 per cent.

"Tax rate cut was a welcome step by the government as it could meaningfully compensate many of the corporates for loss of revenue. Your company has benefited more than any of other media companies because of higher deferred tax liability," JPL CMD Mahendra Mohan Gupta said.

JPL had a deferred tax liability of Rs 78.08 crore.

Its revenue from printing, publishing and digital segments stood at Rs 426.73 crore, down 3.94 per cent from Rs 444.25 crore in the second crore of 2018-19.

FM radio business revenue dipped 21.97 per cent to Rs 62.52 crore as against Rs 80.13 crore.

Its advertisement revenue was down 2.74 per cent at Rs 294.45 crore, from Rs 302.77 crore.

"Given that the festive season, the second important event after general elections in the current fiscal, has been disappointing, we should not expect recovery soon but we remain committed to deliver the best under the circumstances and distribute the surplus cash," Gupta said.

Shares of Jagran Prakashan on Wednesday settled at Rs 54.90 on BSE, up 1.48 per cent from previous close.