Hindustan Unilever Limited announced its results for the quarter ended 30th September 2022.
September Quarter 2022: Strong all-round performance
HUL delivered strong performance in the quarter with Turnover growth of 16% and Underlying Volume Growth of 4%. Growth was significantly ahead of the market with more than 75% of the business winning value and volume market shares 1. EBITDA margin at 23.3% remained healthy despite unprecedented inflationary headwinds. Profit After Tax before exceptional items (PAT bei) grew 9% and Profit After Tax (PAT) grew 20%.
Home Care: Stellar performance continues
Home Care delivered 34% growth with volumes growing in double digit. Both Fabric Wash and Household Care grew in high double-digits with all parts of the portfolio performing well. Liquid Detergents and Fabric Sensations continued to outperform driven by effective market development actions. Calibrated price increases were taken across Fabric Wash and Household Care portfolios as input cost continue to inflate at significantly high levels. During the quarter Surf Excel Matic Power Concentrate and Comfort Sweet Dreams were launched.
Beauty & Personal Care: Double digit growth ahead of the market
Beauty & Personal Care grew 11% driven by outperformance in premium portfolio. Skin Cleansing delivered strong double-digit growth led by Beauty and Premium brands viz. Lux, Dove and Pears. Hair Care further strengthened its market leadership with strong broad-based performance. In Skin Care and Color Cosmetics, premium portfolio outperformed delivering double-digit growth. Premium Beauty Business unit, our incubator for digital brands, launched two new brands ‘Acne Squad’ and ‘Find Your Happy Place’. Further, Simple’s new Vitamin C range, Love Beauty & Planet’s new range of bath and hair care products and Lakme Serum Foundation and Liquid Lip Color were launched.
Foods & Refreshment: Steady performance led by Foods, Coffee and Ice Cream
Foods & Refreshment grew 4% driven by solid performance in Foods, Coffee and Ice-cream. Foods delivered strong double-digit growth with volumes growing in mid-teens, led by Jams and Unilever Food Solutions business. Ice Cream had another strong quarter with double-digit growth on a very high base led by robust performance across brands and formats. Tea cemented its market leadership and grew volumes in mid-single digit while turnover declined marginally due to price cuts. Coffee continues to perform well delivering double-digit growth. Health Food Drinks continued to gain market share and penetration on the back of focused market development actions. Horlicks seeded new formats ‘Nutri Gummies’ and ‘Diabetes Gummies’, Kwality Wall’s launched new flavors and Kissan launched Hazelnut Choco Peanut Butter.
Operating margins remain healthy
EBITDA margin at 23.3% remained healthy despite the unprecedented inflation in input costs. YoY EBITDA margin declined 180 bps. PAT (bei) was up 9% YoY. PAT at Rs 2,616 Crores was up 20% YoY. The difference between PAT (bei) and PAT growth is largely due to one-off prior period tax credits in this quarter. We continue to manage our business dynamically driving savings harder across all lines of P&L, investing competitively behind our brands and ensuring right price-value equation.
Interim dividend: The Board of Directors has declared an interim dividend of INR 17/- per share for year ending 31st March 2023.
Sanjiv Mehta, CEO and Managing Director commented: “Building on our strong momentum we have delivered yet another quarter of solid all-round performance. In H1 2022-23 we have added an incremental turnover of more than Rs. 4,000 crores. Our consistent performance is reflective of our strategic clarity, strength of our brands, operational excellence, and dynamic financial management. We continue to make excellent progress on our ‘Reimagine HUL’ agenda launching two new digital brands, reaching the milestone of 1 million Shikhar outlets and our manufacturing site at Dapada becoming the first in India to be recognized as Sustainability Lighthouse by the World Economic Forum.
Demand environment remains challenging with inflation impacting consumption. However, with softening in some commodities and monetary/ fiscal measures taken by the government, we are cautiously optimistic in the near-term. In this scenario, we will manage our business with agility, continue to grow our consumer franchise whilst maintaining our margins in a healthy range. We remain confident of the medium to long term potential of Indian FMCG sector and HUL’s ability to deliver a Consistent, Competitive, Profitable and Responsible growth.”
[1]As per September’22 Business Winning Report based on Nielsen market data