Britannia's Q3 far from crunchy, low consumer sentiment pull numbers down

While strategic initiatives helped improve profit margins, the 2-4 per cent volume and revenue growth was below expectations

Thanks to the deteriorated consumption sentiment, Britannia reported lower-than-expected revenue growth in the December 2019 quarter (third quarter, or Q3). Consolidated net sales rose by 3.8 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 2,936 crore, against Bloomberg consensus estimate of Rs 3,031 crore, with volume growth decelerating to around 2 per cent, from 3 per cent the previous quarter.

Analysts had pegged volume growth number at 3-4 per cent. This, along with worries over rising food inflation, dragged down Britannia’s stock by 3 per cent to Rs 3,155 — on a day broader market sentiment was muted. The biscuits-to-dairymaker had reported