By Ananta Agarwal
(Reuters) -Dabur India beat quarterly profit estimates on Thursday and forecast a faster sales growth for the rest of the year, as it expects a recovery from monsoon-induced weakness in its beverage business.
The honey-to-fruit juices seller expects a high single-digit sales growth for the full year, it said in a post-earnings call with analysts.
Dabur’s fiscal 2025 revenue rose 3.6% in constant currency, partly due to a one-time inventory correction.
Indian consumer companies, including Dabur, have faced challenges from higher commodity costs and muted urban demand for several quarters.
A relatively cooler summer in parts of India, due to the early onset of monsoons, further weighed on the firm’s revenue growth in the first quarter.
Consolidated revenue, which grew almost 2%, would have been 7% higher, if not for a decline in beverage sales, Dabur said.
However, it still posted a profit that was better than analysts’ expectations, driven by healthy rural demand, price hikes and a wider distribution in rural areas.
Dabur also said that it has noticed some “green shoots” in urban demand, echoing early observations from companies across industries, from consumer conglomerate Hindustan Unilever to Asian Paints, a market leader in the segment.
Dabur could also initiate further price hikes or ramp up its cost-saving initiatives to offset cost inflation in the fiscal year, it said.
The company reported growth in categories such as its namesake honey, housed in the healthcare segment, and toothpastes, air fresheners, and hair care oils, which are part of the home and personal care segment.
Its consolidated net profit rose 3% to 5.14 billion rupees ($58.69 million), coming above analysts’ expectations of 4.95 billion rupees.
Rival Hindustan Unilever also reported a profit growth, in part due to the ongoing recovery in rural sales.
($1 = 87.5850 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Ananta Agarwal and Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by Harikrishnan Nair, Janane Venkatraman and Shailesh Kuber)
