FMCG major Nestle India reported a 4.38% rise in net profit to INR 655.61 crore for the fourth quarter ended December 2023, compared to INR 628.06 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal year, as per a BSE filing.
The company’s total revenue from operations rose to INR 4,600.42 crore in Q4 CY24 from INR 4,256.79 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal year.
The company attributed its 8.9% domestic sales growth to pricing and mix improvements, highlighting robust momentum in e-commerce and out-of-home channels.
According to the regulatory filing, Nestle India’s total expenses increased to INR 3,636.94 crore in Q4 CY24 from INR 3,427.27 crore in Q4 CY23.
Suresh Narayanan, chairman and managing director of Nestle India said, “The quarter was marked by an increase in brand investments across all product groups. I am also pleased to note that during the year 2023, our total sales grew by over 13.3 per cent and we crossed INR 19,000 crore mark.”
“All key brands and product groups have contributed to Nestle India’s consistent growth trajectory,” he shared.
The beverages segment of the company experienced double-digit growth, with Nescafe notably gaining substantial market share. Additionally, the milk and nutrition product group recorded double-digit growth. Prepared dishes and cooking aids maintained commendable growth this quarter, while confectionery also showed strong performance.
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Narayanan added that the company’s out-of-home business experienced rapid acceleration this quarter, driven by a focus on pertinent innovations, targeted geographical expansion, and strong penetration into emerging channels, including the opening of new kiosks in strategic locations.
“E-commerce delivered strong growth contributing to 7% of domestic sales in this quarter. Organized trade also witnessed strong growth backed by festive walk-ins and new product launches. The teams excelled in rolling our shopper resonant activities across our large portfolio in both legacy platforms and the fast growing ‘quick commerce,” the company said in a statement.
Sharing about the rural-urban market growth, Narayanan said, “We are very pleased with an uptick in sales in our RUrban markets which has sustained despite the challenging environment. Our RUrban strategies of creating portfolio, infrastructure analytic platforms, activation has supported deeper penetration and distribution expansion that we have witnessed.”
During this quarter, the company expanded its direct coverage and added 5,300 villages, reaching a total of over 196,000 villages, close to 200,000 villages. The FMCG major shared that its customer ordering app in RUrban markets, NesMitra, has resulted in boosting engagement and gaining significant business traction. NesMitra app has over 7,500 active users which is increasing steadily, and it has been recognized in the Nestle world for driving efficiency and speed.
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“Service excellence and partnership with our retail and distributor partners is our consistent cornerstone of achieving strong results. Innovation and renovation are key components of our business strategy,” the company said.
Nestle India’s board of directors has declared a third interim dividend for the financial year 2023-24 of INR 7 per equity share (face value of INR 1 each) amounting to INR 674.91 crore, which will be paid on and from 5th March 2024.
According to the filing, this dividend is supplementary to the initial interim dividend of INR 27 per equity share (face value of INR 10/- each) and the subsequent interim dividend of INR 140 per equity share (face value of INR 10 each), disbursed on May 8th, 2023, and November 16th, 2023, respectively.
The face value of the equity share has changed from INR 10 each to INR 1 each.
