HT Media consolidated revenue up 28% to Rs 501 crore in Q3
Ad revenue from the print segment was up 37% to Rs 323 crore from Rs 236 crore
HT Media's consolidated revenue for the quarter ended 31st December has jumped 28% to Rs 501 crore from Rs 392 crore in the same quarter of the previous fiscal. EBITDA has increased 83% to Rs 107 crore from Rs 59 crore. The company's EBITDA margin stood at 21% despite the inflationary newsprint price environment.
The company's net profit zoomed 441% to Rs 51 crore from Rs 9 crore with a 10% margin which is the highest in the last 14 quarters. Net cash increased to Rs 1,043 crore from Rs 925 crore.
“The third quarter of this financial year saw a healthy performance in the media sector with an increase in advertising spends, especially during this festive season which was much stronger than the previous year’s. The operating environment continued to show improvement," said Shobhana Bhartia, Chairperson and Editorial Director, HT Media.
She added, "The impact of the revival of economic activity and a turnaround in advertiser sentiment is reflected in our business performance. Print (both English & Hindi publications), Radio and Digital have all recorded revenue growth both on an annual and a sequential basis. In our Print business, revenue growth has come from both robust advertising growth and better traction in circulation. Our Shine business continues to do well with an uptrend in recruitments. The company witnessed an improvement in operating profit margins in the quarter despite inflationary pressure on commodity prices.
Bhartia noted that the ongoing third Covid-19 wave has reintroduced an element of uncertainty as different regions are imposing calibrated restrictions to contain the spread. "We continue to watch the situation closely and while there might be an impact on business, our expectation is that it will be limited."
Ad revenue from the print segment was up 37% to Rs 323 crore from Rs 236 crore while circulation revenue grew 16% to Rs 54 crore from Rs 47 crore. The company said that the sharp increase in ad revenue is driven by a strong festive season and government advertising. It added that circulation revenue grew on the back of recovery of copies in circulation and continued improvement in realization.
Overall, the operating revenue from the print segment grew 37% to Rs 396 crore from Rs 289 crore. Operating EBITDA swelled 293% to Rs 87 crore from Rs 22 crore driven by topline growth. HT Media is the publisher of Hindustan Times, Hindustan, and Mint.
The English print segment comprising HT and Mint saw 47% growth in ad revenue at Rs 176 crore while circulation revenue more than doubled to Rs 10 crore. The company said that the English print segment saw robust revenue recovery in nearly all advertising categories besides substantial growth in ad volumes as well as improvement in yields. The growth in circulation revenue is led by copies.
Revenue from the Hindi print segment comprising Hindustan rose 26% to Rs 148 crore while circulation revenue increased 5% to Rs 45 crore. Strong traction in ad volumes in the festive season was led by growth in categories such as Retail, FMCG, BFSI, and E-commerce besides government advertising. There was muted advertising growth from categories such as Auto, Education, and Medical/Health and Fitness. Circulation revenue continues to grow with a focus on improvement in realisation.
The FM radio segment posted a 27% growth in operating revenue at Rs 34 crore. The company posted an operating EBITDA of Rs 5 crore against a loss of Rs 16 crore in Q3 FY21. The segment witnessed strong growth in ad volumes on account of the festive season and good market recovery. Inventory utilisation saw improvement on an annual and sequential basis.
Operating revenue from digital was up 42% to Rs 36 crore while operating EBITDA was at the breakeven level.
