Dabur India (DABUR) Q4 98/99 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY99 sales grew 12.7% and net profit rose 12.9%, despite a weak market and discontinued non-core businesses; like-for-like sales growth excluding those businesses was 17.6%.

• Strategy shifted toward professional management and core health care, personal care, oncology and foods, with promoter roles moving toward strategic direction and governance.

Financial highlights

• Sales turnover reached ₹914.77 crore versus ₹811.36 crore in FY98; turnover including other income was ₹937.97 crore versus ₹824.80 crore.

• Profit after tax was ₹50.13 crore, up 12.9%; profit before tax was ₹51.60 crore versus ₹45.37 crore.

• EPS was ₹17.58 versus ₹15.80; total dividend recommended was ₹5 per share, including ₹2 interim and ₹3 final.

• EBDIT was ₹103.43 crore; operating cash generated was ₹82.22 crore versus ₹38.08 crore in FY98.

Outlook and guidance

• Five-year targets cover sales, profitability, working capital, return on capital employed and employee development; growth and productivity initiatives were set against top Indian-company benchmarks.

• Management said the business was close to its target of ₹1,000 crore turnover by the turn of the century.

• Axol Laboratories was established in the UK to pursue European oncology markets, with manufacturing planned to meet UK regulatory standards.