PGP Glass Ceylon PLC reported its results for the half year ended September 30, 2021 (1H) .
The half-yearly revenue was at Rs. 4,140 million as against Rs. 3,560 million of the corresponding period in the previous year reflecting a growth of 16% with operating profit increased from Rs. 425 million (12%) to Rs. 814 million (20%). The Profit After Tax for 1H grew from Rs. 316 million to Rs. 543 million.
The revenue for the second quarter remained flat at Rs. 2264 million as against Rs. 2230 million during the similar period previous year in spite of the impact of loss of sales in the domestic market for over 40 days due to quarantine curfew imposed from Aug 20, 2021 and global supply chain disruptions impacting the container availability and rising ocean freight costs in export market.
Domestic sales during the quarter was at Rs. 1,577 mn as against Rs. 1,560 mn of the corresponding period of the previous year. The Export revenue showed a marginal growth of 3% as compared to previous year with a revenue of Rs. 687 mn as against Rs. 670 mn of previous year.
The gross margin for the quarter increased from 24% to 26%as compared to the similar period of the previous year and the PBT stands at Rs. 447 mn as against Rs. 314 mn for the corresponding period of the previous year.
ED and COO Sanjay Jain said due to the current global supply chain disruption, manufacturing industries across the globe have witnessed steep rise in input costs as well as energy costs. “We are also facing a similar situation in the latter half of Q2, with raw materials, packaging materials and LPG prices at an all-time high and forecasted to further rise in the coming days.”
To mitigate the unprecedented cost increase, the company plans to optimise operations with digital and analytics tools and continue focus on premium products with decoration for international customers, thereby partially reducing the cost implication on the domestic market.
“The Company is aggressively exploring new international markets for its products in the specialty liquor segment. The strategy to innovate in new product design and development, with increased global footprint has helped the Company effectively mitigate demand fluctuations in its existing markets due to the pandemic situation,” he said. The Board of Directors declared an interim dividend of Rs 0.25 per share at its meeting held on November 10, 2021.
Subsequent to the shareholder approval obtained at the AGM & approvals of the regulatory authorities, the company changed its name from Piramal Glass Ceylon PLC to “PGP Glass Ceylon PLC” from September 1, 2021.