Godrej Consumer Products Q4 profit slips as commodity inflation weighs

FMCG major Godrej Consumer Products Ltd on Thursday said its consolidated net profit for the fourth quarter ended March 2022 declined 0.7% on a year-on-year basis.

Net profit for the January-March quarter this year came in at Rs 363.24 crore as against Rs 365.8 crore during the same three months of 2020-21. 

The decline in net profit comes as the company’s home care sales took a hit. It also blamed higher commodity inflation and weak performance in Indonesia as reasons for its overall poor performance. 

The company said total income for the fourth quarter climbed 6.1% to Rs 2,915.82 crore from Rs 2,747.3 crore during the corresponding three months of the previous financial year.   

Godrej Consumer also saw a decline in its fourth-quarter EBITDA to Rs 467.6 crore from Rs 565.7 crore in the same quarter last year. 

Other highlights

1) Consolidated EBITDA margins for Q4 at 18.1%, down 320 basis points from a year ago.

2) Godrej Consumer said India sales were up 9% in Q4; Africa, US and Middle East sales were up 14%.

3) Latin America and SAARC sales were up 26%; sales in Indonesia were down 16%.

4) Personal care segment saw a growth of 18%; home care sales declined by 7%.

Segment-wise performance

Godrej Consumer said that the weak performance in the household insecticides segment was driven by Indonesia, a relatively muted season in India and a high base. 

On the flip side, it said that the market for air fresheners was picking up steadily, indicating positive growth metrics in the coming quarters. 

The company said that the growth in the personal wash and hygiene segment was driven by markets like India and Nigeria and that the hair colour segment also saw a strong performance led by a gradual recovery.  

Godrej Consumer attributed the growth in its hair care segment to markets like Africa, the US and the Middle East. 

It said that the EBITDA margins were down owing to higher commodity inflation and weak performance in Indonesia.