United Spirits profit jumps 5 times, sales up by 15.6%

United Spirit Limited said its net sales rose “lapping a soft prior year comparator, with growth driven by resilient consumer demand in the off-trade and recovery of the on-trade” in a statement of the quarterly results.

Diageo controlled liquor producing brand United Spirits Ltd said on Tuesday that it increased its consolidated net profit by five fold to Rs 261.1 crore for the first quarter that ended on June 30, 2022. The company posted a net profit of Rs 50.3 Cr for the April-June quarter last year, United Spirits Ltd (USL) said in a regulatory filing.

The company’s operating income margin increased by 15.6% to 7,131.3 crore in the quarter under comparison from 6,168.5 crore in the corresponding period of the previous financial year 2021- 2022. The company’s net sales rose ” lapping a soft prior year comparator, with growth driven by resilient consumer demand in the off-trade and recovery of the on-trade” USL said in an announcement of the results.

USL’ s total spending amounted to Rs 6,864.6, an increase of 12.91% in the first quarter of fiscal year 2022-23 from Rs 6,079.7.

Commenting on the results, Hina Nagarajan, Managing Director of Diageo India, said: “Our business today is ahead of pre-pandemic levels, substantiating the resilience of our category.” Inflation, supply constraints in some markets and a one-time special allowance for the company’s employees affected EBITDA marginal performance, she added.

On the outlook, Nagarajan said that in the near-term, she expects inflationary pressures to continue.”Our confidence in the medium and long-term prospects of our industry, the resilience of our business and our ability to weather the waves remains high,” she said.

Shares of United Spirits Ltd settled at Rs 850.05 on BSE on Tuesday, felling by 1.82% from the previous day’s closing.