United Breweries Net Touches Rs 22.81 Cr

United Breweries Ltd, the flagship of UB Group, has posted a net profit of Rs 22.81 crore for the financial year ended March 31, 1998, as against Rs Rs 10.02 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.

For the 12-month period net sales stood at Rs 301 crore, up from Rs 257.17 crore, an increase of 17 per cent compared with the previous year. The profit before tax for the period also grew 36 per cent to Rs 26 crore from Rs 19 crore in the previous year.

According to the company, it continued to dominate the mild beer segment in the country, increasing its market share by two per cent, despite there being an overall two per cent drop in the segment.

McDowell and Company, another UB Group company, has reported a net profit of Rs 6.89 crore for the six months ended March 31, 1998.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs 1.41 crore for the corresponding period of the previous period. It has registered a net profit of Rs 12.98 crore (Rs 2.91 crore) for the 18-month period ended March 31, 1998, according to the unaudited results released by the company here on Thursday.

The profit for the 18-month period are for accounting for losses incurred by the polymers division which was sold during the period.

The company has posted a net sales of Rs 393.13 crore (Rs 341.96 crore) for the six-month period. Out of the convertible warrants issued to them earlier, the promoter company United Breweries has exercised option to convert 69 lakh warrants into equity share of Rs 10 each at a premium of Rs 45 per share. Accordingly, there is an increase in the share capital as well as share premium.

It has reported a profit before tax (PBT) of Rs 20.56 crore for the 18-month period, after accounting for non-cash charges of about Rs 18.5 crore. This compares with the PBT of Rs 3.81 crore for the corresponding prior period.

In the six months from October 1997, subsequent to the divestiture of the polymers division, the company posted a PBT of Rs 12.82 crore.

On the other hand, Herbertsons Ltd, the Mumbai-based UB Group company, for the six month period ended March 31, 1998, has registered a net profit of Rs 2.16 crore (Rs 2.01 crore).