BackHT Media edges down as costs counter revenue rise
Net profit fell 1% from a year ago to `73.9 cr in the three months ended 31 December
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New Delhi: HT Media Ltd, publisher of the Hindustan Times and Mint newspapers, on Friday reported a marginal decline in fiscal third quarter net profit as higher employee costs and advertising and sales promotion expenses offset increases in advertising and circulation revenues.
Net profit fell 1% from a year ago to ₹ 73.9 crore in the three months ended 31 December from ₹ 74.7 crore in the year-ago period. The profit was notched up on a 5% rise in revenue to ₹ 649.9 crore from ₹ 617 crore in the same period.
The company, which also runs the Fever104 FM radio stations, posted a 4% increase in advertising revenue to ₹ 496.7 crore. Circulation revenue increased 10% to ₹ 73.4 crore.
“We are happy to report revenue growth across all our core businesses on the back of higher advertising in the festive season. We increased our circulation in the Hindi belt, strengthening our position in Uttar Pradesh and Bihar; Mumbai is growing steadily; and we remain the most read English daily in Delhi and the national capital region," HT Media’s chairperson and editorial director Shobhana Bhartia said in a statement.
Employee costs rose 14% to ₹ 120.5 crore in the three months because of new hiring, pay raises and a charge for regulatory compliance, the company said. Advertising and sales promotion expenses rose 18%. Digital revenue for the company that operates the jobs website Shine.com increased 36% to ₹ 26.7 crore in the three months to 31 December. The radio business posted a 3% decline in revenue to ₹ 25.8 crore, primarily due to reduced focus on events and activations, it said.
On its near-term outlook, HT Media said its strategic focus would be to improve profitability in all its businesses, especially HT Mumbai and digital, increase its radio footprint, take advantage of an expected improvement in the economy and leverage its strong balance sheet (net cash of ₹ 1,144 crore) to fund expansion. HT Media shares shares fell 2.81% to ₹ 131.60 on the BSE on a day the benchmark Sensex rose 1% to 29,094.93 points.
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