Nestle India PAT rises 9% YoY to Rs 986 crore in Q2

Total sales stood at Rs 5,074.76 crore in September 2024 quarter, up 1.30% from Rs 5,009.52 crore recorded in the same period a year ago.

During Q2 FY25, domestic sales grew by 1.23% YoY to Rs 4,883.14 crore, while export sales gained 3.13% YoY to Rs 191.62 crore.

Profit before tax (PBT) increased by 7.33% YoY to Rs 1,311.6 crore in the quarter ended 30 September 2024.

On half year basis, the company's net profit increased 7.88% to Rs 1,732.96 crore on 2.3% rise in revenue to Rs 9,917.95 crore in H1 FY25 over H1 FY24.

The company said that it continued to accelerate growth by almost 38%, primarily driven by quick commerce and fueled by brands such as KITKAT, NESCAF', MAGGI and MILKMAID. Growth was supported by premiumization, new user acquisition, festive participation and targeted digital communications, it added.

Suresh Narayanan, chairman and managing director, Nestle India, commented on the results, 'Despite a challenging external environment characterized by muted consumer demand and high commodity prices, particularly for coffee and cocoa, we remained resilient in our pursuit of growth. This quarter, five of our top twelve brands achieved double-digit growth. While some key brands faced challenges due to softer consumer demand, we have robust action plans in place to address this. Notably, 65% of our top twelve brands, including MAGGI noodles, showed positive volume growth in the past nine months.

I am happy to inform you that over the past eight years, we have recalibrated and rejuvenated our product portfolio by launching over 145 new products contributing to approximately 7% of sales. Eight new projects are now in the pipeline.

Nestl' has successfully achieved its goal of introducing CERELAC variants with no refined sugar, a project initiated three years ago. The expanded CERELAC range in India will now include 21 variants, 14 of which will have no refined sugar. Seven of these no-refined-sugar variants will be available by the end of November 2024, with the remainder to follow in the coming weeks.

E-commerce delivered high double-digit growth, which was the highest in the last seven quarters contributing to 8.3% of domestic sales. The Out-of-Home business is also experiencing strong double-digit growth, offering a comprehensive portfolio that includes hot and cold vending solutions, coffee applications, and a wide range of culinary products.'

Meanwhile, the company appointed Manish Tiwary as non-retiring director and MD (key managerial personnel) of Nestl' India with effect from 1 August 2025 for a term of five consecutive years based on the recommendation of its nomination and remuneration committee, subject to approval of the shareholders. Tiwary will be succeeding Suresh Narayanan, who will retire on 31 July 2025.

Manish Tiwary is an experienced business executive with nearly three decades in large-scale operations and strategic initiatives within the e-commerce and consumer goods sectors. He currently serves as the special project manager for Zone AOA at Nestl' in Switzerland.

Previously, Tiwary was the country manager for Amazon India for over eight years, following a twenty-year tenure at Unilever in various roles across sales, marketing, and general management in India, the Gulf, and North Africa. He holds a B.Tech in Computer Science and an MBA from the Indian Institute of Management, Bangalore.

Nestl' is the world's largest food and beverage company. It manufactures internationally famous brand names such as Nescaf', Maggi, Milkybar, Kit Kat, Bar-One, Milkmaid and Nestea.

Shares of Nestle India declined 3.50% to currently trade at Rs 2,376 on the BSE.