HUL to pay 800% interim dividend as Q2 net vaults over 16% to Rs1,276 cr

Hindustan Unilever Ltd (HUL) has reported a standalone net profit at Rs1,276 crore for the July-September quarter, a 16.42 per cent increase year-on-year, mainly on account of lower expenses.

The company had posted a net profit of Rs1,096 crore during the same quarter of the previous fiscal, HUL said in a stock market filing.

The company's board has declared an interim dividend of Rs8 per share of face value Re1 each for the year that ends next March.

HUL gained from lower expenses in the GST regime despite a 1.63 per cent decline in net sales during the quarter to Rs8,199 crore compared to Rs8,335 crore in the year-ago period.

HUL said although the transition to GST had an impact on trade purchases in the early part of the quarter, consumer sales remained stable.

HUL's expenses in the second quarter were down 5.95 per cent at Rs6,748 crore against Rs7,175 crore during July-September last fiscal.

"In a challenging business environment, we delivered a particularly strong overall performance. This reflects the strength of our brands and our relentless focus on execution in the market place," HUL chairman Harish Manwani said.

Standalone net profit in the previous quarter (April-June 2017) stood at Rs1,283 crore.

Revenue from the personal care segment during the July-September 2017 quarter was lower at Rs3,910 crore against Rs4,028 crore a year earlier.

Revenue from homecare products stood at Rs2,739 crore compared with Rs2,777 crore in the previous year quarter.

Sales in the refreshment category, however, was higher at Rs1,222 crore during the September 2017 quarter against Rs1,169 crore in the previous year quarter.

"Despite short-term challenges, we are confident of the medium-term outlook for the FMCG industry and remain focused on driving consumer value and profitable volume driven growth," said Mnwani.

HUL's stock closed 0.18 per cent up at Rs1,273.55 on the BSE.