On Monday, FMCG giant ITC Limited reported a 6 percent growth in its net profit at Rs 5,335 crores for the quarter ended December, beating market estimates. The net profit rose from Rs 5,006, reported in the corresponding period of the previous year. There is an increase in revenue by 2 percent Year-on-Year (YoY) to Rs 19,484 crore.
Interim Dividend and EBIDTA
FMCG giant also declared an interim dividend of Rs 6.25 per share for the fiscal year 2023-2024, which will be paid in February. The recorded date for the same is February 8th.
In the December quarter, Earnings before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization or EBIDTA witnessed a marginal decrease of 3.2 percent to Rs 6,024 crore. EBIDTA margin was at 36.6 percent and fell by 180 basis points YoY. One basis point is one-hundredth of a percentage point. Additionally, the segment PBIT reported significant growth, increasing by 24.1 percent compared to the same quarter last year.
Performance of Major Segments
Cigarettes
The revenue for the segment increased by 3 percent YoY to Rs 8,295 crores from Rs 8,086 crore in last year’s quarter. The Profit before tax (PBT) for cigarettes rose by 2 percent to Rs 4,966 crore in this year’s (December) quarter. 
Other business segments of ITC also showed strong performance, recording an increase in revenues by 8 percent to Rs 5,218 crore in the third quarter, from the Rs 4,849 crore reported in the same quarter last year. The Profit Before Tax (PBT) for this segment also witnessed a 23 percent increase, reaching Rs 433 crore.
Hotels
The revenue of the Hotel improved by 18 percent to Rs 872 crore, showing the best performance in this quarter. PBT for this segment also increased by 56 percent to Rs 233 crore. Furthermore, The segment’s EBITDA margin rose by 470 bps YoY to 36.2 percent. 
Agribusiness
Agribusiness reported a decline in it’s revenue and PBT to Rs 3,273 crore and Rs 381 crore, respectively, due to trade restrictions in agri commodities. Excluding Wheat and Rice, their revenue increased by 14.2 percent YoY.
Paperboards, Paper, and Packaging
The paperboards, paper, and packaging segment reported bad performance similar to Agribusiness. The revenue of this segment decline by 10 percent YoY to Rs 2,080 crore from Rs 2,305 in last year.
