ITV

Tag: Q3

  • Havas hits the accelerator as AI strategy bears fruit

    Havas hits the accelerator as AI strategy bears fruit

    PARIS: Havas is charging into the final quarter of 2025 with a spring in its step. The advertising group posted organic net revenue growth of 3.8 per cent in the third quarter, smashing expectations and vindicating its strategic pivot towards artificial intelligence and data-driven marketing. The surge in top-line performance prompted management to sharpen full-year guidance decisively upwards, signalling confidence that the worst of the economic headwinds facing the sector have passed.

    The results reveal a business in motion. North America blazed a trail with organic growth of 7.4 per cent, driven chiefly by Havas Health’s double-digit expansion and its ability to wring higher budgets out of existing clients—a rare feat in an industry where money typically flows only to new business wins. The Asia-Pacific region bounced back smartly from a tepid second quarter with 8.2 per cent growth, whilst the United Kingdom performed solidly. France, dragged down by a tough comparison with last year’s Olympic Games boost, and Latin America, battered by unfavourable currency moves, were the laggards.

    Havas now expects full-year net revenue organic growth of between 2.5 and 3.0 per cent, up from previous guidance of above 2.0 per cent. More significantly, the group reckons on an adjusted EBIT margin improvement of around 50 basis points to approximately 12.9 per cent—a meaningful lift that suggests operational leverage is kicking in. The nine-month figures show organic growth of 2.8 per cent, buoyed by cross-selling wins amongst the top 30 clients.

    The financial picture is straightforward: Havas is extracting better returns from its existing client base whilst simultaneously expanding its footprint. Operating margin expansion of this magnitude rarely happens by accident. The group has plainly succeeded in persuading clients to spend more on higher-margin services and shifted work into more profitable lines—precisely what a well-functioning agency should accomplish.

    Two strategic moves underscore management’s ambition. The majority acquisition of Tidart, a Spanish digital performance specialist, plugs gaps in Havas’ capabilities across e-commerce and performance marketing. More consequential is the formation of Horizon Global, a joint venture with Horizon Media Holdings worth a combined $20 billion in global billings. Styled as an “AI-native solution,” the venture signals that Havas’ Converged.AI strategy—the group’s bet on helping clients harness artificial intelligence across their marketing ecosystems—is moving from rhetoric into revenue-generating reality.

    Chief executive vYannick Bolloré  spoke of “impressive commercial momentum” and “notable new business wins.” Translation: the market is buying what Havas is selling.

    None of this occurs in a vacuum. Foreign exchange movements clipped 3.9 per cent from reported revenue growth, with the dollar’s recent weakness particularly stinging. Geopolitical tensions, trade pressures and political uncertainties lurk in the background. The group remains cautious about the year ahead, even as it tightens guidance.

    The broader picture for Havas: a global advertising industry grinding through modest growth and relentless margin pressure is being challenged—and beaten—by a group that has successfully positioned itself as a challenger taking share through genuine commercial innovation. Whether that momentum persists through 2026 is the question investors are asking now. For the moment, the trajectory looks encouraging.

  • Reliance net profit jumps 41 % YoY to reach Rs 18,549 crores in Q3

    Reliance net profit jumps 41 % YoY to reach Rs 18,549 crores in Q3

    Mumbai: Mukesh Ambani-led conglomerate Reliance Industries Ltd (RIL) continued its golden run, and posted a net profit of Rs 18,549 crores for the third quarter ended 31 December 2021. This is an increase of 41 per cent from ₹13,101 crore reported a year ago during the same period.

    The company had posted a profit of Rs 13,680 crore in the September 2021 quarter.

    “I am happy to announce that Reliance has posted best-ever quarterly performance in 3Q FY22 with a strong contribution from all our businesses. Both our consumer businesses, Retail, and Digital services have recorded the highest ever revenues and EBITDA,” said RIL chairman and MD Mukesh Ambani on Friday.

    Ambani said the company continued to focus on strategic investments and partnerships across its businesses to drive future growth in the last quarter. “Retail business activity has normalised with strong growth in key consumption baskets on the back of festive season and as lockdowns eased across the country. Our digital services business has delivered broad-based, sustainable, and profitable growth through improved customer engagement and subscriber mix,” he added.

    The consolidated revenue for the company by market-capitalisation grew to Rs 1,91,271 crore, up by 62 percent for the quarter from Rs 1,17,860 crore in the year-ago period. Revenues in the previous quarter stood at Rs 1,67,611 crore.

    Reliance Jio’s revenue rise five per cent at Rs 19,347 crore

    The net profit of Reliance Jio, the telecom arm of the company rose 10 per cent YoY to Rs 3,615 crore for Q3. It was Rs 3,291 crore in the last year period. The revenue rose five per cent at ₹19,347 crore as against ₹18,492 crore in the last year period. “Jio now has over five million connected wireline customers and has been consistently enhancing its FTTH product with new apps on STB, Society Centrex, 4K content on JioTV+, Home Secure, Home Automation, LiveTV and Gaming solutions,” the conglomerate said.

    Jio also undertook ~20 per cent hike across prepaid plans effective 1 December 2021 in line with other industry operators. According to the company, while the ARPU is set to improve to Rs 151.6 led by a better subscriber mix and recent tariff hike, the full impact of tariff hike will be reflected in ARPU and financials over the next few quarters. During 3Q FY22, average data and voice consumption per user per month increased to 18.4 GB and 901 minutes, respectively.

    Meanwhile, Jio continues to maintain its top position in the 4G speed chart with a 22.0 Mbps average download speed in December 2021, according to the latest Telecom Authority of India (Trai) report.

    Ambani also highlighted that the recovery in global oil and energy markets supported strong fuel margins and helped its O2C business deliver robust earnings. “Our Oil & Gas segment delivered strong growth in EBITDA with volume growth and improved realisation. We are making steady progress towards achieving our vision of Net Carbon Zero by 2035. Our recent partnerships and investments in technology leaders in the solar and green energy space is illustrative of our commitment to partner India and the World in the transition to clean and green energy. We continue to pursue growth initiatives and collaborate with global leaders who share our vision of a sustainable future for our planet,” he added.

  • Netflix Q3 result: Continues to grow strong in APAC, much work to do in India

    Netflix Q3 result: Continues to grow strong in APAC, much work to do in India

    KOLKATA: Netflix fell short of global subscriber additions in Q3, albeit a slower growth was forecasted by the streaming giant. The company has added 2.2 million net subscribers in the quarter, even lower than its prediction of 2.5 million.

    In the first two quarters of 2020, Netflix added 15.8 million net in Q1, 10.1 million net subscribers in Q2. However, the streaming service already warned at the end of Q2 that there would be a decline in subscriber addition due to “pull forward” in the first half.

    “As we expected, growth has slowed with 2.2m paid net adds in Q3 vs. 6.8m in Q3 19. We think this is primarily due to our record first-half results and the pull-forward effect we described in our April and July letters. In the first nine months of 2020, we added 28.1m paid memberships, which exceeds the 27.8m that we added for all of 2019. In these challenging times, we’re dedicated to serving our members,” it stated in a letter to shareholders.

    Netflix posted revenue of $6.44 billion and earnings of $1.74 per share in the quarter while Wall Street analysts on average expected third-quarter sales of $6.38 billion and EPS of $2.13. For q4, it forecasts 6.0 million paid net adds which is much lower compared to 8.8 million in the corresponding quarter last year. If it achieves the forecast, it will create a record 34 million paid net adds for 2020, well above the prior annual high of 28.6m in 2018.

    “As the world hopefully recovers in 2021, we would expect that our growth will revert back to levels similar to pre-Covid. In turn, we expect paid net adds are likely to be down year over year in the first half of 2021 as compared to the big spike in paid net adds we experienced in the first half of 2020. We continue to view quarter-to-quarter fluctuations in paid net adds as not that meaningful in the context of the long-run adoption of internet entertainment, which we believe is still early and should provide us with many years of strong future growth as we continue to improve our service,” Netflix said.

    However, despite the pandemic effect on shooting, Netflix continues to expect the number of originals launched on the service to be up year over year in each quarter of 2021. It will continue to invest heavily in local language content.

    APAC, the largest contributor to q3 growth:

    While the quarter has seen a very tepid growth globally, the APAC story is somewhat different. This region was the largest contributor to paid membership growth this quarter with 46 per cent of overall subscriber addition. The revenue also rose 66 per cent year over year.

    “We’re pleased with the progress we’re making in this region and, in particular, that we’ve achieved double-digit penetration of broadband homes in both south Korea and Japan. While this is encouraging, we still have much work to do and we're working hard to replicate this success in India and other countries,” Netflix stated.

    Netflix is working with local partners like Reliance Jio in India, wherein it launched a bundle with the latter’s mobile and fibre broadband plans in Q3. As part of this broad partnership, it will integrate Netflix with two of Jio’s set top boxes. Netflix also mentioned that it partnered with financial institutions in India to make payment processing easier and more seamless, which it expects will have retention benefits. “All of these initiatives are important and work in concert with our big investment in local originals to improve the Netflix experience for our members,” it added.

  • Edelweiss bearish on Q3 performance of media industry

    Edelweiss bearish on Q3 performance of media industry

    MUMBAI: Financial services conglomerate Edelweiss is bearish on the third-quarter performance of the media industry. The firm has predicted it to be one of the toughest quarters for the industry with a  decline in both revenue and EBITDA. The report has also suggested that ad growth of broadcasters is likely to be under severe pressure due to an economic slowdown and high base while subscription revenue growth for broadcasters is likely to remain robust owing to the new tariff order (NTO).

    The report anticipates ZEEL’s Q3 revenue, EBITDA and PAT to decline by 5 per cent, 22 per cent and 21 per cent YoY respectively. It has also predicted advertisement revenue to decline owing to the economic slowdown, cutback in ad spends by large categories like consumer goods, auto, telecom and retail and withdrawal from the FreeDish platform. However, it belives subscription revenue growth to remain roboust owing to the tailwind from NTO and viewership gains in portfolio channels.

    “Amidst this challenging environment, we expect ZEEL's revenue to decline 5 per cent YoY, with domestic ad revenue declining 13 per cent (on a base of 22 per cent) and subscription revenue growing ~19 per cent YoY (on a base of 29 per cent). We expect EBITDA margin to contract ~630bps YoY owing to decline in ad revenues,” it added.

    It anticipates SUN TV Network’s Q3 EBITDA and PAT to decline by 12 per cent, 26per cent and 15 per cent  YoY respectively. Sun TV Network’s ad growth likely to be impacted by the broad-based ad slowdown and increased competition in regional markets. On the other hand, subscription revenue growth is likely to remain robust in the quarter as well.

    "Overall, we anticipate SUN TV’s revenue growth to decline 12 per cent YoY on account to dwindling ad revenue and absence of movie release (blockbuster movie in the base – Sarkar). Advertising growth for the business is expected to decline by low to mid double digit YoY. Subscription growth expected to be 16 per cent in Q3FY20 on a base of 24 per cent (9 per cent growth in DTH; 40 per cent in cable). The production business did not have any releases this quarter. We estimate EBITDA to decline 26 per cent in the wake of weak ad revenue growth and increased investment in fresh programming for SUN NXT and other tele channels,” the report adds.

    At the same time, it predicts a flattish performance of DTH operator Dish TV as well. Moreover, the pressure on subscriber addition and ARPU is predicted to remain given stress in rural economy and migration of customers to the FreeDish platform. Overall, a fall of 4 per cent qoq in both revenue and EBITDA, while ARPU is likely to decline at Rs 108, as per Edelweiss estimates.

    After a transform change last year with the roll out of NTO, the Telecom Regulatory Authority of India (TRAI) has released a few amendments to the new price regime very recently. While the proposed changes are beneficial for customers, broadcasters’ subscription growth could slow down due to the price revision as the financial services group suggests at the same time.

    While the amendments are consumer friendly, the report suggests that the new guidelines can lead to reduction in end-consumer ARPUs owing to the constraints placed on – bouquet discounting , price-linked bouquet inclusion of channels, and cap on the network capacity fee. However for broadcasters, this could lead to slowdown in the subscription revenue growth in the NTO as the prices are likely to come down.

    “On the flipside, we might also see – i) increased offtake of channels due to the downward price revision. ii) Migration of FreeDish customers to pay TV which could partially offset the slowdown in subscription revenues,” it adds.

    “Q4FY20 to be impacted marginally due to these amendments as they are effective from 1 March 2020. Overall, this is likely to be potentially negative for broadcasters given – ad revenue growth has been sluggish and resumption looks challenging; larger portion of growth for broadcasters in FY20 had been driven by the subscription revenues. However, in the long run, this would have a positive impact for the  broadcasters, as this reduces the OTT migration risk by reducing the price differential,” Edelweiss points out. 

  • Netflix’s first domestic subscriber loss in 8 years; misses international addition estimate

    Netflix’s first domestic subscriber loss in 8 years; misses international addition estimate

    MUMBAI: The streaming giant Netflix witnessed domestic subscriber loss for the first time in the last eight years since it separated its DVD mail-order system and streaming platform. In the second quarter (Q2) of 2019, Netflix also added nearly 2 million fewer international customers than expected.

    In contrast to the projected 5 million addition in international subscribers, Netflix only gained 2.7 million subscribers. On the other hand, the company also lost more than 100,000 subscribers in the US. The company in its letter to shareholders said that Q2’s content slate drove less growth in paid net adds than it anticipated. Netflix added that the missed forecast was more noticed in the regions where prices were hiked. However, the company also denied any impact of the increased competition on the Q2 results.

    “Additionally, Q1, there may have been more pull-forward effect than we realised. In prior quarters with over-forecasts, we’ve found that the underlying long-term growth was not affected and staying focused on the fundamentals of our business served us well,” the company said in a letter to its shareholders.

    The streaming platform has started the third quarter with a returning season of its hit show Stranger Things while the final season of another iconic show Orange is the New Black will be released in the quarter. The company expects the subscriber growth to return to more typical growth in Q3, and said it is seeing that in these early weeks of Q3. It also forecast Q3 global paid net adds of 7 million with 0.8 million in the US and 6.2 million internationally.

    However, Netflix posted revenue of $4.92 billion, in-line with Wall Street’s $4.93 billion estimate, and earnings of 60 cents per share beating analyst consensus estimates of EPS 56 cents. “Much of our domestic, and eventually global, Disney catalog, as well as Friends, The Office, and some other licensed content will wind down over the coming years, freeing up budget for more original content,” the company added.

    The company also highlighted building out its licensing and brand partnerships effort, which is optimising for fan and viewer engagement over revenue maximisation. It also noted during the launch of Stranger Things season 3, the platform partnered with best-in-class brands like Coke, Nike, Burger King, and Baskin Robbins to build deep connections with the fans.

    More importantly, it announced a very important move in its important international market India in front of the product initiative. “After several months of testing, we’ve decided to roll out a lower-priced mobile-screen plan in India to complement our existing plans. We believe this plan, which will launch in Q3, will be an effective way to introduce a larger number of people in India to Netflix and to further expand our business in a market where Pay TV ARPU is low (below $5). We will continue to learn more after launch of this plan,” the company said.

  • Mukta Arts’ Q3 FY19 consolidated revenues up 33% y-o-y to INR 40.7 core

    Mukta Arts’ Q3 FY19 consolidated revenues up 33% y-o-y to INR 40.7 core

    Mumbai : Mukta Arts Limited today announced the financial results for the third quarter and nine months ended on December 31, 2018, as approved by its Board of Directors.

    Consolidated revenue for Q3 FY19 grew by 33.2% y-o-y; from Rs 30.5 crores to Rs 40.7 crores. Whistling Woods International, a Mukta Arts’ subsidiary in the education business posted a 19% growth in revenue for Q3 FY19. During the quarter, Whistling Woods hosted the CILECT Congress, a globally renowned & prestigious event in the film education fraternity. This was the first time that the event was held in India. It attracted eminent keynote speakers and a total of 171 delegates represented 52 countries.

    Mukta A2 Cinemas, a subsidiary into exhibition business posted a 43% y-o-y growth in Q3 FY19 revenues at Rs 19.7 crores and turned EBITDA positive. The company added 5 new screens recently and its total count as of today stands at 64 screens, including 6 in Bahrain & 10 under its JV with Asian Cinemas.

    For 9M FY19, the company’s consolidated total revenue at Rs 124.3 crore grew by 23%. EBITDA for nine months was Rs 11.7 crore while Total Comprehensive income at Rs 1.7 crore as against Rs 1.4 crore after extraordinary income of Rs 4.3 crore during the corresponding previous nine months of FY18.

    Commenting on its performance, Rahul Puri, Managing Director, Mukta Arts said, “Both our key businesses, exhibition and education reported strong revenue growth during Q3. Even for nine months, the revenue growth of over 20% is quite healthy and we reported a small post tax profit compared to losses during the similar period last year. We see good traction across the businesses.”

  • FY-15: Prime Focus revenue up 80%; Q4-2015 YoY revenue up 2.4 times

    FY-15: Prime Focus revenue up 80%; Q4-2015 YoY revenue up 2.4 times

    BENGALURU: Prime Focus Limited (PFL) reported 80 per cent revenue growth for the year ending 30 June, 2015 (FY-2015) at Rs 1607.59 crore as compared to the Rs 892.9 crore during the corresponding 4 quarter (12 month period) of the previous year. Last year, the company had reported revenue of Rs 1081.42 crore for the 15 month period ended 30 June, 2014.

    Notes: (1) 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million =1 crore

    (2) The company had filed results for a fifteen month period ended 30 June, 2014, hence YoY comparison is being done between Q4-2015 and Q5-2014 and QoQ comparison is between Q4-2015 and  Q3-2015 (quarter ended 31 March, 2015).

    YoY, PFL’s revenue increased by 2.4 times in Q4-2015 at Rs 518.21 crore as compared to the Rs 214.99 crore in Q5-2014.

    AnchorThe company’s yearly and quarterly bottom line has been negatively affected due to significant exceptional costs primarily in relation to previously announced divestiture of PFL PLC and planned restructuring / integration costs in relation to the merger with Double Negative.

    The company reported a net loss of Rs 292.22 crore in FY-2015 and a loss of Rs 213.76 crore in Q4-2015. The company’s simple EBIDTA for FY-2015 at Rs 241.23 crore (15 per cent margin) was 22.6 per cent more than the Rs 196.76 crore (19.1 per cent margin) for the 15 month period ended 30 June, 2014. PFL says in its earnings release that EBIDTA for the 12 month period ended 30 June, 2014 was Rs 179.6 crore.

    EBIDTA for Q4-2015 at Rs 86.17 crore (16.6 per cent margin) was more than five times the Rs 14.29 crore (6.6 per cent margin) in Q5-2014, but declined 18 per cent as compared to the Rs 105.15 crore (25 per cent margin) in the immediate trailing quarter.
     

    Let us look at the other numbers reported by PFL:

    Figures A and B below show PFL’s major expense heads. As is obvious, a major expense head for the company is employee benefit expense or EBE.

    PFL’s EBE in Q4-2015 at Rs 263.11 crore (50.8 per cent of TIO) was 13 per cent more the Rs 232.94 crore (64 per cent of TIO) in Q3-2015 and more than double (2.07 times) the Rs 127.11 crore (59.1 per cent of TIO) in Q5-2014.

    Fig B indicates that EBE also shows a linear upward trend in terms of percentage of TIO over the nine quarters starting Q4-2013 until the current quarter Q3-2015. EBE has been the highest in Q4-2015 in terms of absolute rupees, but in terms of percentage of TIO, it was highest in Q3-2015.

    Finance and Interest cost in Q4-2015 at Rs 25.39 crore (4.9 per cent of TIO) was 45.1 per cent more than the Rs 17.50 crore (8.1 per cent of TIO) in Q5-2014 and 78.69 per cent more than the Rs Rs 14.21 crore (3.4 per cent of TIO) Q3-2015.

  • Hawkins ad spend flat in Q1-2015

    Hawkins ad spend flat in Q1-2015

    BENGALURU:  Indian pressure cooker manufacturer Hawkins Cookers Limited (Hawkins) spent Rs 3.37 core (34.1 per cent of Advertising and Sales Promotion or ASP) towards Advertising (Ad spend) in Q1-2015, 2.7 per cent lower than the Rs 3.46 crore (19.7 per cent of ASP) in Q4-2014 and 1.2 per cent more than the Rs 3.33 crore (39.4 per cent of ASP) in Q1-2014. Overall, ad spend was almost flat across the three quarters – Q1-2015, Q4-2014 and Q1-2014.

    Note: 100,00,000 = 100 lakh = 10 million = 1 crore

    The company’s ASP comprises ad spend and discounts. As per Fig 1 below, based on historical data over the nine quarter period starting Q1-2013 until Q1-2015 (current quarter), the company spends the maximum towards ads in Q3, the festive season in the country. In Q2 and Q4, it resorts more towards discounting.

    The company has been skewed more towards offering discounts as compared to advertising. Over the nine quarter period under consideration, the simple average ad spend in terms of percentage of ASP is 26.7 per cent, while the proportion of discount over the same period works out to 73.3 per cent of ASP.  This trend is likely to continue based on historical data across the nine quarters under consideration. The company in Q2-2015 is likely to resort significantly on offering discount and spend a lower towards advertising. Q3-2015 is likely to see the company’s ad spend go up significantly.

    The company’s highest ad spend over the nine quarters has been Rs 8.67 crore in Q3-2014 (49.3 per cent of ASP). Hawkins ad spend has been lowest in terms of rupees in Q4-2013 at Rs 0.35 crore (2.9 per cent of ASP), while the lowest in terms of percentage of ASP was in Q2-2013 at 2.8 per cent (Rs 0.37 crore).

    The company’s ASP in Q1-2015 at Rs 9.88 crore (10.2 per cent of Total Income from Operations or TIO) was 43.7 per cent lower than the Rs 17.55 crore (12.4 per cent of TIO) in Q4-2014 and 17 per cent more than the Rs 8.44 crore (11.2 per cent of TIO) in Q1-2014. ASP in terms of simple average in absolute rupees across the nine quarters under consideration is about Rs 13.01 crore.

    Hawkins TIO in Q1-2015 at Rs 97.20 crore was 31.5 per cent less than the Rs 141.87 crore in Q4-2014 and 29.1 per cent more than the Rs 75.31 crore in Q1-2014.

    While the company’s TIO across the nine quarters under consideration shows a linear upward trend, the company’s ASP seems to have flattened out linearly in terms of absolute rupees, and shows a slightly downward trend in terms of percentage of TIO. Please refer to Fig 1A below.

    Hawkins PAT for Q1-2015 at Rs 7.07 crore (7.3 per cent of TIO) was 46.1 per cent lower than the Rs 13.13 crore (9.3 per cent of TIO) in the immediate trailing quarter and 44.6 per cent more than the Rs 4.89 crore (6.5 per cent of TIO) in the corresponding year ago quarter. Please refer to Fig 2 below.

    Overall, on a linear basis, PAT seems to be moving upward both in terms of absolute rupees as well as percentage of TIO.

    Click here to read the financial result

  • BBC retains title as #1 choice for Asia Pacific’s premium audience

    BBC retains title as #1 choice for Asia Pacific’s premium audience

    MUMBAI: The BBC’s international news offering has cemented its leadership position amongst Asia Pacific’s high income earners. The Ipsos Affluent Survey Asia Pacific for Q3 and Q4 2013 reveals that the BBC’s cross-platform news brand, which includes 24 hour global news channel BBC World News, and bbc.com, which offers up-to-the minute international news and in-depth analysis, is the top choice for premium audiences for the fourth year running.  The survey shows that the BBC has extended its lead over its competitors in the past 12 months.  It also reveals that BBC World News is most effective for reaching the top tier of earners as it has more viewers from this much-coveted demographic than any other news channel.

     

    The new research also shows that the BBC has reinforced its reputation as the most trustworthy and insightful news brand in Asia, and that it is recognised for offering the highest quality journalism of any news channel or print title.

     

    Jim Egan, CEO of BBC Global News Ltd, says, “In the past 18 months we have implemented an ambitious strategy to bring our international news operations together into an integrated offer for global audiences. These latest results show that our strategy is yielding rewards and that our target audience has welcomed the increased investment across TV, online and mobile, together with our ongoing commitment to providing the most comprehensive news and current affairs content for the Asia Pacific market.”

     

    He added, “In terms of overall reach we’ve made great gains within our competitive set but, even more importantly, these figures show that we are way ahead in terms of the coveted premium audience.  As the leader in global breaking news, with bureaux across the region, we welcome the confirmation that the BBC remains the brand of choice for discerning audiences looking for a trusted and truly global perspective on the world’s most important stories.”

     

    The popularity of BBC World News is further reflected in the finding that, for the first time, it is the most popular channel for frequent business travellers watching from their hotel rooms.

     

    The survey also reveals that mobile has played an important role in the recent results.  It shows that the BBC was the number one news brand across apps and mobile for premium audiences.  These IASAP findings support a recent BBC World News and bbc.com global mobile study into the usage of mobile devices by affluent consumers which emphasises the growing trend for news consumption on mobile platforms.

     

    The IASAP study surveys pan-regional and local media consumption and product consumption among affluent adults and business professionals in main cities in the Asia Pacific region. The latest survey covers Q3-Q4 2013.

     

    Source: Ipsos Affluent Survey Asia Pacific, Q3-Q4 2013, Q1-Q4 2012, Q1-Q4 2011, Q1-Q4 2010. Based on monthly reach % to one-decimal point unless otherwise specified. Cross-platform news brand/total brand reach: TV/website/mobile reach.  Premium audience/high income earners: personal monthly income US $10K+ (N=405; projected universe of 232,600).  Frequent business travellers: taken international business trips 3+/6+ last year (N=941/339; projected universe of 618,312/183,679). 

  • Q4-2014: Raj TV board recommends 5 per cent final dividend for FY-2014

    Q4-2014: Raj TV board recommends 5 per cent final dividend for FY-2014

    Updated: 03:58 PM

     

    BENGALURU: The shareholders of Raj Television Network (Raj TV) have further reason to cheer. The board has recommended a final dividend of 5 per cent or Rs 0.25 per equity share of face value of Rs 5 each, in addition to the earlier interim dividend of 5 per cent or Rs 0.50 per equity share on the earlier face value of Rs 10 before the split and issue of bonus shares during FY-2014. The company had issued bonus shares in the ratio of 1:1 after the earlier interim dividend in FY-2014.

     

    Raj TV reported a 17.68 per cent higher Income from Operations (Op Inc) in FY-2014 at Rs 79.47 crore as compared to the Rs 67.53 crore in FY-2013. However, Op Inc in Q4-2014 was (-28.13) per cent lower at Rs 17.91 crore than the Rs 24.92 crore in the immediate trailing quarter Q3-2014, and was 2.52 per cent more than the Rs17.47 crore of the year ago quarter Q4-2013.

     

    Note: (1) Rs 100 lakh = Rs100,00,000 = Rs 1 crore = Rs 10 million.

     

    Note: (2) The results in this report are standalone.

     

     Let us look at the other results reported by Raj TV for FY-2014 and Q4-2014

     

    PAT in FY-2014 at Rs12.91 crore (16.25 per cent of Op Inc) was 39.05 per cent higher than the PAT of Rs 9.29 crore (13.75 per cent of Op Inc) in FY-2013. In Q4-2014, PAT at Rs1.01 crore (5.62 per cent of Op Inc) was a little more than a fifth or (-79.82) per cent lower than the Rs 4.98 crore (20.01 per cent of Op Inc) in Q3-2014, but almost double (88.91 per cent more than) the Rs 0.53 crore (3.05 per cent of Op Inc) of Q4-2013.

     

    Raj TV’s Total Expense (Tot Exp) in FY-2014 at Rs 59.97 crore was 9.55 per cent more than the Rs 54.74 crore in FY-2014. Tot Exp in Q4-2014 at Rs15.45 crore was (-16.85) per cent lower than the Rs18.58 crore in Q3-2014 and 1.54 per cent more than the Rs15.22 crore in Q4-2013.

     

    Employee Benefits Expense (EBE) and Administrative and other Expenses (Admin exp) are two major expense heads at Raj TV. While EBE in Q4-2014 was substantially higher y-o-y despite almost similar Op Inc, Admin Exp in Q4-2014 was very high q-o-q, despite Raj TV’s Op Inc being much higher in Q3-2014 as compared to Q4-2014.

     

    Employee Benefits Expense in FY-2014 at Rs 17.60 crore (22.15 per cent of Op Inc) was 50.78 per cent more than the Rs11.68 crore (17.29 per cent of Op Inc) in FY-2013. EBE in Q4-2014 at Rs 4.74 crore (26.47 per cent of Op Inc) was (-31.1) per cent lower than the Rs 6.88 crore (27.61 per cent of Op Inc) and 41.02 per cent more than the Rs 3.36 crore (19.24 per cent of Op Inc) in Q4-2013.

     

    Administrative and other expense in FY-2014 at Rs 14.69 crore (18.48 per cent of Op Inc) was 32.46 per cent more than the Rs11.09 crore (16.42 per cent of Op Inc). During Q4-2014, Admin exp at Rs 4.41 crore (24.6 per cent of Op Inc) was 40.67 per cent more than the Rs 3.13 crore (12.57 per cent of Op Inc) in Q3-2014 and 2.2 per cent more than the Rs 4.31 crore (24.68 per cent of Op Inc) in Q4-2013.

     

    Raj TV has reported a 76.1 per cent increase in Long Term Borrowings (non-current liabilities) in FY-2014 at Rs 12.49 crore as compared to the Rs 7.05 crore in FY-2013. Also, in its current liabilities the company has reported a 3.52 times increase in short term borrowings in FY-2014 at Rs 24.97 crore as compared to the Rs 7.09 crore in FY-2013. The company’s trade receivables in FY-2014 at Rs 58.27 crore has gone up by 36.15 per cent as compared to the Rs 42.8 crore in FY-2013.

     

    Raj TV’s Fixed Assets in FY-2014 has gone up by 77.60 per cent to Rs113.99 crore as compared to the Rs 64.18 crore in FY-2013. Its inventories in FY-2014 have gone up by almost 6 times (5.76 times) to Rs 11.65 crore from Rs 2.02 crore in FY-2013. Its trades payables has gone down in FY-2014 to Rs 2.63 crore from Rs 3.48 crore in FY-2013.

     

    The company reported earnings per share (EPS) of Rs 9.43 per equity share in FY-2014 and Rs 0.19 in Q4-2014.