Average Bollywood films, Cricket World Cup weigh on PVR INOX profit

PVR INOX

31/01/2024 09:55

BENGALURU, Jan 31 (Reuters) - PVR Inox  PVRL.NS ,
India's largest multiplex operator, reported a sharp sequential
drop in third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as the Cricket World
Cup and an underwhelming slate of Bollywood films kept viewers
away.
    The theatre chain's profit slumped to 128 million rupees
($1.5 million) during the October-December quarter, from a
profit of 1.66 billion rupees in the previous three months.
        Since the merger of PVR and Inox closed in February last
year, the results are not comparable year-over-year.
        "Due to the Cricket World Cup hosted in India, the first
half of the quarter had a muted start," PVR said in a statement.
        Moreover, major film releases were also delayed in the
cricket-crazy country due to the World Cup, while some Bollywood
releases, such as 'Tiger 3', 'Sam Bahadur' and '12th Fail',
delivered average or below-average box office collections.
        Analysts had also said that the Hollywood movies, which
account for 15%-20% of PVR's box office revenue, would be in
short supply due to the strike in 2023.
    As a result, its occupancy slipped to 25.2% in the quarter
from 32.3% in the previous quarter.
    That, combined with a roughly 26% declines in both ticket
and food and beverage sales, resulted in a nearly 23%
sequentially drop in overall revenue to 15.46 billion rupees.
    PVR Inox's shares dropped 3% after the results.
 
 ($1 = 83.0000 Indian rupees)

 (Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by
Sonia Cheema and Savio D'Souza)
 ((Navamya.GaneshAcharya@thomsonreuters.com; +91 8805175330 ;))