HT Media Ltd on Friday reported a nearly five-fold jump in its consolidated net profit at Rs 51.23 crore for the third quarter ended December 2021.
The company had posted a net profit of Rs 10.33 crore during the October-December quarter of the previous fiscal, HT Media said in a regulatory filing.
Its revenue from operations was up 36.79 per cent to Rs 466.13 crore during the quarter under review, as against Rs 340.74 crore in the corresponding period of the previous fiscal.
HT Media's total expenses were at Rs 440.13 crore, up 16.20 per cent in Q3/FY 2021-22, as against Rs 378.75 crore.
Commenting on the results HT Media Chairperson and Editorial Director Shobhana Bhartia said the company witnessed an improvement in operating profit margins in the quarter despite inflationary pressure on commodity prices.
''The third quarter of this financial year saw 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,'' she said.
The impact of the revival of economic activity and a turnaround in advertiser sentiment is reflected in HT Media's business performance, Bhartia added Its revenue from ‘Printing & publishing of newspapers & periodicals’ segment was at Rs 396 crore, up 36.89 per cent, as against Rs 289.27 crore of the corresponding period.
While revenue from ''Radio broadcast & entertainment'' was up 27.23 per cent to Rs 34.48 crore, as against Rs 27.10 crore of Q3/FY21.
HT Media's revenue from the 'Digital' segment was up 42.36 per cent at Rs 36.19 crore, as against Rs 25.42 crore.
''Print (both English & Hindi publications), Radio and Digital have all recorded revenue growth both on an annual as well as 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,'' Bhartia said.
Over the ongoing third wave of the coronavirus pandemic, Bhartia added it 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,'' she said.
Shares of HT Media Ltd were trading at Rs 32.10 on BSE, up 12.24 per cent from the previous close.
(With inputs from PTI)
