India's Tata-owned Trent Q2 profit surges three fold, shares hit record high

ARVIND FASHIONS

07/11/2023 09:38

BENGALURU, Nov 7 (Reuters) - Indian retailer and
hypermarket operator Trent  TREN.NS  on Tuesday reported a
nearly three-fold surge in the second-quarter profit because of
strong demand, sending its shares to a record high.
    The Tata Group-owned company's consolidated net profit rose
to 2.35 billion rupees ($28.23 million) in the quarter ending
Sep. 30, despite a 46% rise in total expenses.
    Shares of Trent rose as much as 8.7% to a record high of
2,427.1 rupees after the results.
    The September quarter witnessed a surge in demand ahead of
the festive season, and sales were also boosted by purchases for
weddings.
    The gross margin profile of Trent's Westside and Zudio
stores continued to grow during the quarter, the company said in
an exchange filing.
    Most Indian businesses grappled with lower footfalls during
the September quarter as rising inflation pushed consumers to
tighten their belts. 
    Retail inflation in India eased compared with the year ago
period but continued to stay above the Reserve Bank of India's
tolerance zone of 2% to 6%, with the only respite occurring in
September, when the price gauge dropped to a three-month low of
5%.
    Still, Trent's consolidated revenue from operations rose
52.7% to 29.82 billion rupees in the September quarter. 
    The company, which also owns and operates the Star Bazaar
hypermarket chain in partnership with UK's Tesco, witnessed
improved footfalls.
    Its peer Arvind Fashions  ARVF.NS  reported a 19% rise in
second-quarter profit on Tuesday.
    Aditya Birla Fashion and Retail  ADIA.NS  will report its
results later this week.
 
($1 = 83.2340 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by
Mrigank Dhaniwala)
 ((AshnaTeresa.Britto@thomsonreuters.com;))