Profit before tax stood at Rs 1,917.10 crore in Q3 September 2020, up by 65.8% to Rs 1,156.2 crore in Q3 September 2019. Tax expense during the quarter declined by 12.4% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 302.4 crore.

The company's realization per case improved by approximately 8% in the third quarter essentially on account of higher mix of CSD and rationalized trade promotions. Total sales volumes, however, were down by 4% year-on-year (YoY) to 11.95 crore cases in Q3 September 2020 as compared to 12.45 crore cases in Q3 September 2019.

EBITDA increased by 16.9% to Rs 380.79 crore in the third quarter from Rs 325.66 crore reported in the same period last year. EBITDA margins improved by 241 bps in Q3 September 2020 as the company was able to sustain certain cost-optimization measures implemented during the pandemic.

Commenting on the performance for Q3 September 2020, Ravi Jaipuria, chairman, Varun Beverages, said: "As the country moved into the unlock phase, we witnessed healthy recovery in demand in the second half of the quarter, especially from rural & semi-urban areas. This enabled us to restrict sales volume de-growth at 6.7% YoY in India. Our international territories saw faster than expected recovery in consumption and registered a 5.8% YoY volume growth during the quarter.

So on a consolidated basis, we reported a marginal de-growth of 3.6% in volumes. In addition, we were able to sustain certain cost-optimisation measures implemented during the pandemic that enabled us to report improved profitability in Q3. Our well-oiled distribution model consisting of owned-logistics supply chain and end-to-end infrastructure facilities has held us in good stead in such challenging times. During the quarter, we have further fortified this strength across sub-territories. With the reopening of theatres, restaurants, mass transportation and outdoor facilities, we are seeing an encouraging revival in demand on a month-to-month basis. On the back of our solid distribution network, we believe, we are well positioned to address this growth in consumption.

As we look ahead, buoyant rural and semi-urban demand owing to widespread monsoons, should lead to a broad-based economic recovery in the months ahead. In addition, the upcoming festivities and various support measures announced by the Government to boost consumption and spending further bode well for our product categories over the medium-to-longer term. On the whole, we are confident of delivering encouraging growth in sales and performance in the quarters ahead."

Varun Beverages is a key player in beverage industry and one of the largest franchisee of PepsiCo in the world (outside USA). The company produces and distributes a wide range of carbonated soft drinks (CSDs), as well as a large selection of non-carbonated beverages (NCBs), including packaged drinking water sold under trademarks owned by PepsiCo.

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