Liquor maker Radico Khaitan posted its fiscal first quarter profit at Rs 68.27 crore, up 10.1 per cent in comparison to Rs 61.99 crore during the corresponding quarter of FY23. It posted revenue from operations at Rs 4023.31 crore, up 26.4 per cent from Rs 3183.80 crore during the first quarter of FY23. While the company posted total income of Rs 4024.43 crore, the total expenses during the quarter ended June 2023 stood at Rs 3940.42 crore. The company EBITDA stood at Rs 118.9 crore.
Radico Khaitan said that the total IMFL volume increased 7.9 per cent at 7.36 million cases whereas Prestige and Above category volume was at 2.39 million cases, up 27.2 per cent. Prestige and Above brands posted net sales of Rs 419.5 crore, up 40.3 per cent on-year. Non-IMFL revenue growth was due to incremental country liquor volumes from our Sitapur bottling unit coupled with the country liquor price increases received w.e.f. 1-April-2023.
Further, gross margin during the quarter was 43.6 per cent as compared to 40.6 per cent in Q4FY2023. On-quarter basis, the gross margin improved significantly due to the price increases received in the Country Liquor business coupled with price increases and ongoing premiumization in the IMFL business. On a YoY basis, despite significant commodity inflation across ENA and glass bottles (accounting for over 65 per cent of the cost of production), the company has been able to sustain gross margins, it said.
“FY2024 started on a strong note, in line with our expectations, as we delivered strong operational and financial performance. This year can be characterized as a year of transformation for Radico Khaitan as we continue to focus on our luxury and premium portfolio,” said Lalit Khaitan, Chairman & Managing Director, Radico Khaitan. “Our Sitapur greenfield distillery project is progressing well and is in the last stage of implementation. We expect to start commercial production during Q2FY2024,” he added.
“I am pleased to report that we have delivered another quarter of a strong double-digit Prestige and Above volumes growth which has exceeded our earlier guided growth rate of 15-18 per cent. Overall, we have recorded significant improvement in sequential margins, which have been sustained on a year‐on‐year basis. This was aided by strong efforts on driving premium value growth, price increase received over the last four quarters supported by easing inflation in certain raw materials,” said Abhishek Khaitan, Managing Director, Radico Khaitan.
The company also announced the reappointment of Sushmita Singha as Women Independent Director for a second term of 5 years with effect from April 01, 2024; of Tushar Jam as Independent Director for a second term of 5 years effective from August 08, 2024; and of Sharad Jaipuria as Independent Director for a second term of 5 years effective from August 08, 2024.