Kingfisher maker United Breweries Q1 profit down 16.1% at Rs 136.34 crore on higher excise duty, company costs

financialexpress.com:

Kingfisher beer maker United Breweries posted its fiscal first quarter profit at Rs 136.34 crore, down 16.1 per cent in comparison to Rs 162.50 crore during the corresponding quarter of FY23. It posted revenue from operations at Rs 5243.01 crore, up 0.9 per cent as against Rs 5196.08 crore during the first quarter of previous year. The company said that the profit was dragged by higher excise duty and company costs during the quarter-under-review. The EBITDA stood at Rs 233 crore. The company clocked a total income of Rs 5253.43 crore during Q1FY24 in comparison to Rs 5206.51 crore a year earlier. However, total expenses during the quarter in review stood at Rs 5072.96 crore, up 1.7 per cent as against Rs 4988.37 crore during the first quarter of FY23. 

The company stated that the Q1 volumes were down 12 per cent with strong recovery during the quarter end. It was impacted by RTM changes, supply challenges and lower inter-state sales. “Volume in the quarter decreased 4 per cent excluding RTM changes predominantly dominated by Telangana and Haryana. In Telangana, we were facing capacity constraints during peak season given the continued strong growth of the industry,” it said. The premium segment, meanwhile, decreased 21 per cent during the quarter whereas volumes were flat excluding RTM changes. “Within the segment, we see mid-teens growth for Kingfisher Ultra Max and promising results for Heineken Silver in focus states. 

In terms of volume growth, the north region saw a volume decline of 15 per cent with strong decline in Delhi and Haryana partially offset by growth in Uttar Pradesh. West saw a volume growth of 2 per cent driven by Goa, Maharashtra and Madhya Pradesh. East clocked a volume decline of 8 per cent mainly