Asian Paints profit down 18% in Q3 as higher input costs hurt margins

Asian Paints on Thursday reported an 18 per cent decline in net profit for the October-December quarter at Rs 1,015.7 crore as higher input costs hurt margins. The country’s largest paintmaker missed Bloomberg’s estimate of Rs 1,137.8-crore net profit.But revenue was up 25.6 per cent year-on-year (YoY) at Rs 8,527.2 crore and was in line with Bloomberg’s estimates. 

Volumes in the domestic decorative paints business grew 18 per cent, said the paints major in a press release, registering a strong double-digit growth for five quarters in a row. Profit before interest, depreciation and tax was down 14.8 per cent YoY at Rs 1,629.1 crore in the quarter, while its total expenses rose 38.5 per cent at Rs 7,220 crore.

The cost of raw material consumed in the quarter was up 41.4 per cent at Rs 4,084.5 crore compared to last year.

Amit Syngle, MD & CEO of Asian Paints, said, “The steep and unprecedented inflationary trend in raw material prices continued to impact the gross margins across businesses this quarter.”