HT Media Q2 revenues up 30 pc
HT Media Ltd, publishers of Hindustan Times, reports an increase of 30 pc in revenues during Q2 to Rs 257.5 crores.
HT Media Limited (HTML) has posted a 236 per cent jump in net profit during the second quarter ended September 30, 2006. Profit after tax (PAT) stood at Rs 26.9 crore, as compared to Rs 8 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.
This translates into a non-annualised earning per share (EPS) of Rs 5.74.
The company has reported a 30 per cent increase in revenues for the quarter under review to Rs 257.5 crore, compared to the corresponding quarter of the previous year, driven primarily by the Mumbai operations and its Hindi publications.
HTML had launched its Mumbai operations in July 2005, swiftly gaining a strong foothold in the country’s largest media market. It has also launched three new Hindi editions since March this year.
“Our performance during the quarter continues to be encouraging. Our Mumbai edition continues to perform well and we are now one of the country’s largest players in the Hindi segment.
“During the quarter we entered into an agreement with The Wall Street Journal, which will enable us to create a world class newspaper for Indian readers at a time when India has become a global player in numerous industries.
“We also entered into a joint venture with the Times of India Group that will help us establish a new and vibrant newspaper in Delhi. Going forward, we will continue to maintain a robust revenue growth, and expect our new ventures to contribute significantly to our revenues”, said Mrs. Shobhana Bhartia, Vice Chairperson and Editorial Director, HT Media.
Enhanced operating efficiencies and robust ad revenue growth resulted in a 109 per cent improvement in earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and ammortisation (EBITDA) for the quarter, which increased to Rs 55.3 crore from Rs 26.5 crore.
The operating ( EBITDA) margin for the quarter improved 21 per cent from 13 per cent last year.
Pre-tax profits recorded a substantial increase from Rs 13 crore last year to Rs 41.9 crore in the second quarter of the current financial year.
For the half-yearly ended September 30, 2006, PAT increased to Rs 57.5 crore from 17.8 crore during the same period of the previous year.
Revenues during the first half of 2006-07 increased by 31 per cent to Rs 505.4 crore from Rs 384.5 crore, while operating profits stood at Rs 115.9 crore as compared to Rs 55.7 crore in the same period of the previous year.
