PVR INOX Q3 Net Profit Soars 3-Fold to Rs.35.9 Cr, Revenue Up 11%

Multiplex operator PVR INOX on Thursday reported a net profit of ₹35.9 crore, up nearly three times, in the third quarter ending December, as unprecedented average ticket pricing and spending on food and beverages helped drive revenue.

The company, until known as PVR Ltd, reported a net profit of ₹12.8 crore during the period October-December last year, according to a regulatory filing.

The company's operating revenue stood at ₹1,717.3 crore, higher by 11 per cent for the December-ended quarter of the current fiscal year. For the year-ago period, this had stood at ₹1,545.9 crore.

"Blockbuster movies propelled Q3 to the highest box office earnings of the year," said PVR Inox in its earnings statement.

The movie Pushpa 2 has created a "history as the biggest blockbuster ever in Indian cinema", contributed 36% of its third quarter India box office collections and 12% of its 2024 India Box Office collections, added the film itself.

In the quarter under review, 3.73 crore admissions were recorded with an ATP (Average ticket price) of ₹281, which the company claims as the "highest quarterly average".

Besides, in the December quarter, PVR Inox also witnessed a record of the highest quarterly F&B spend per head at ₹140 and highest quarterly advertisement income at ₹148.6 crore since the time of the pandemic.

"This success led to record-breaking average ticket prices and spending per head, reaching ₹281 and ₹140 respectively. Advertising revenue also soared to ₹1,486 million, the highest since the pandemic," it said.

The October-December quarter started on a good note with the performances of Tamil and Telugu films, Junior NTR's Devara Part-1 and Rajnikanth's Vettaiyan in October.

By November, Hindi films made a recovery by way of two superhits-Singham Again and Bhool Bhulaiyaa 3-each crossing around ₹300 crore. Regional films went ahead and had continued good shows. Amaran, the second-highest Tamil film grossing above ₹250 crores for this year.

"December emerged as the biggest month of the year, driven by the record-breaking release of Pushpa 2. The film grossed over ₹1,450 crore in India, with its Hindi dubbed version achieving over ₹900 crore, a new record for the highest-grossing Hindi film ever," it said.

The total expenses of PVR INOX in the December quarter were ₹1,712.8 crore, up 7.9 per cent.

Revenue of the movie exhibition business from the PVR INOX for the December quarter saw an increase by 5% at ₹1,638.8 crore for the December quarter.

However, its movie production and distribution business revenues have surged more than threefold to ₹146.4 crore. That was at ₹41.2 crore in the corresponding December quarter of the last fiscal year.

Total income, which also includes other income, rose 9.6% to ₹1,759.1 crore in the December quarter.

During the quarter, 11 new screens opened, taking PVR INOX to a total screen count of 1,728 screens in 350 cinemas across 111 cities in India and Sri Lanka.

Moreover, PVR Inox, which post consolidation is shutting unviable screens as part of a strategy that focuses on growth through profitability has so far this fiscal year opened 77 screens and shut down 67 low-performing ones.

"For the whole year, the company expects to open about 100–110 new screens," it said.

Moving forward, Managing Director Ajay Kumar Bijli emphasized that the focus will be on transitioning to a capital-light model, improving free cash flow, reducing net debt, managing costs, and delivering a varied portfolio of films.

"With a robust content pipeline, a slew of strategic growth initiatives, and continued financial discipline, we are confident in sustaining our leadership and driving long-term value for all stakeholders," he said.

On Thursday, shares of PVR INOX Ltd closed at ₹1,122 on the BSE, marking a decline of 0.91 percent from the previous session's close.