The company attributed the rise in profit after tax to increased revenue from operations and improved margins. Profit before tax reached Rs 666.92 crore in the September 2023 quarter, marking a substantial 30.47 per cent increase compared to Rs 511.18 crore in the same quarter of the previous year.
During Q3 CY23, total sales volumes grew by 15.4 per cent to 220 million cases, up from 190 million cases in Q3 CY22, driven by double-digit growth in both Indian and international markets.
Gross margins also showed improvement, increasing by 163 basis points to 55.3 per cent from 53.7 per cent in Q2 CY24, primarily due to the softening of PET chips prices.
The EBITDA for the company amounted to Rs 8,821.4 crore, recording a 26.2 per cent year-on-year growth, and the EBITDA margin improved by 79 basis points to 22.8 per cent in Q3 CY24, driven by higher gross margins and operational efficiencies.
Ravi Jaipuria, the Chairman of Varun Beverages, expressed satisfaction with the strong quarter, citing a top-line growth of 22 per cent and a 30 per cent year-on-year growth in PAT. He noted the company’s resilience and substantial sales volume growth in both Indian and international markets.
The company’s strategic initiatives include investments in greenfield and brownfield manufacturing facilities in India and the development of a greenfield facility in the Democratic Republic of the Congo (DRC). They also plan to expand their capacity for juices and value-added dairy beverages to align with changing consumer preferences.
In addition, the board approved the incorporation of a subsidiary company, VBL Mozambique, to expand beverage distribution operations in Mozambique. The acquisition is expected to be completed by or before November 30, 2023.
Varun Beverages is a significant player in the beverage industry and one of the largest PepsiCo franchisees globally, operating outside the USA. The company produces and distributes a wide range of carbonated soft drinks (CSDs) and non-carbonated beverages (NCBs), including packaged drinking water under PepsiCo trademarks. Varun Beverages has franchise rights for various PepsiCo products in multiple Indian states and Union Territories, as well as in Nepal, Sri Lanka, Morocco, Zambia, and Zimbabwe.
