Footwear maker Bata India's Q3 profit slumps on sluggish demand
01/02/2024 14:32
BENGALURU, Feb 1 (Reuters) - Footwear maker Bata India
BATA.NS reported a third consecutive drop in its quarterly
profit on Thursday, dragged by sluggish demand and higher
expenses.
The lower than estimated bottomline of the company, which
houses brands like Hush Puppies and Scholl, mirrors peer Metro
Brands' METB.NS fourth straight drop in quarterly profit.
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Bata India's consolidated profit fell about 30% to 579.8
million rupees (nearly $7 million) in the three months to Dec.
31. Analysts had expected a profit of 1.06 billion rupees,
according to LSEG data.
The shoemaker, which is in talks with Adidas ADSGn.DE for
a strategic partnership, reported a marginal rise in revenue to
9.03 billion rupees from 9 billion rupees a year earlier, its
slowest revenue growth since at least 2019, as per LSEG data.
Expenses rose 4.8% as the footwear retailer's
inventory-related costs grew more than half on a year-on-year
basis.
The company, which had established itself as a household
name among Indians for its tennis shoes, said it opened 54 new
franchise stores across the country in the quarter.
Shares of Bata India settled 2% lower ahead of the earnings.
($1 = 82.9669 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Yagnoseni Das in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank
Dhaniwala)
((Yagnoseni.Das@thomsonreuters.com; +91 6001289066;))