Profit before tax dropped 56.7% year on year to Rs 106.53 crore in the quarter ended 31 March 2023.

EBITDA in Q4 FY23 was at Rs 134.5 crore, down 49.7% from Rs 267.1 crore posted in Q4 FY22. EBITDA margin slipped to 13.9% in Q4 FY23 as compared to 24% reported in the corresponding quarter previous year.

Net working capital stood at Rs 771 crore in Q4 FY23 as compared with Rs 631.7 crore in Q4 FY22 and 804.5 crore in Q3 FY23.

For the full year, the company's net profit rose 6.5% to Rs 571.25 crore on 23.2% jump in revenue to Rs 4,788.64 crore in FY23 over FY22.

V.S. Ganesh, managing director, Page Industries, said, “We are pleased at the company's overall growth through the year despite a challenging economic climate and a general decrease in consumption. We consider this impact to be temporary and maintain a positive outlook on demand. Although the company experienced some impact on profitability due to higher inventory levels acquired during an inflationary period and lower than optimal capacity utilization, we taken several steps to address these issues. These measures include transitioning to a pull-based auto replenishment system, which allows for better management of inventory levels, and strengthening the supply chain planning to effectively manage the situation.”

With respect to its outlook, the company said that the current market correction and softening of demand is temporary and the company will continue to build for the future in terms of products, teams, distribution, and technology.

Meanwhile, the company's board has declared fourth interim dividend of Rs 60 per equity share. The record date for the same is fixed on 2 June 2023 and the dividend will be paid on or before 23 June 2023.

Further, the board approved the re-appointment of Shamir Genomal as deputy managing director of the company for another term of 5 years with effective from 1 September 2023, subject to the approval of Shareholders at the ensuing AGM.

The board, based on recommendation of the Nomination & Remuneration Committee and the Audit Committee, has also approved the appointment of Deepanjan Bandyopadhyay as chief financial officer (CFO) of the company with effective from 1 June 2023.

Chandrasekar K, current CFO who is retiring due to his superannuation from the company on 31 May 2023.

Page Industries is the exclusive licensee of JOCKEY International Inc. (USA) for manufacture, distribution and marketing of the JOCKEY brand in India, Sri Lanka, Bangladesh, Nepal, Oman, Qatar, Maldives, Bhutan and UAE. Page Industries is also the exclusive licensee of Speedo International for the manufacture, marketing and distribution of the Speedo brand in India.

The counter hit a 52-week low of Rs 34,968.60 in intraday today.