hul: HUL standalone PAT up 17% to Rs 2,243 crore; volumes take a beating – Times of India

MUMBAI: Hindustan Unilever (HUL) has reported a 17 per cent growth in standalone profit after tax at Rs 2,243 crore during the third quarter ended December 31, 2021, while the domestic consumer growth was at 11 per cent. The growth is mainly driven by price increases taken during the quarter to combat inflationary pressures.
The company said business fundamentals remained strong “with handsome market share gains in all our divisions, both urban and rural markets and across price segments”. The underlying volume growth at 2 per cent is, however, the lowest in four quarters.
In the context of unprecedented inflation, the company said in a statement, it has continue to manage our business dynamically driving savings harder across all lines of P&L and taking calibrated pricing actions using the principles of Net Revenue Management. HUL, CMD, Sanjiv Mehta, said: “We have delivered a strong and resilient performance in the quarter despite moderation in market growths and significant levels of commodity inflation. I am particularly pleased that the growth is extremely competitive with our market share gains being highest in more than a decade. Our performance is reflective of our strategic clarity, strength of our brands, operational excellence, and dynamic financial management of our business.”
Mehta said in the near-term, operating environment will continue to remain challenging. “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,” said Mehta.