Zee News reports higher revenue and profit in Q3

While consolidated revenue was Rs 782.7 million, the company earned a net profit of Rs 162.4 million, up 56.8 per cent

BestMediaInfo Bureau | Delhi | January 18, 2012

Zee News Limited (ZNL) yesterday reported third quarter (ended December 31, 2011) fiscal 2012 consolidated revenues of Rs 782.7 million, representing a y-o-y growth of 5.1 per cent. Consolidated EBITDA stood at Rs 192.7 million with strong EBITDA margins of 24.6 per cent, up from 18.1 per cent in the last year. Net profit before tax stood at Rs 162.4 million, a y-o-y growth of 56.8 per cent.

The existing news channels Zee News, Zee Business, Zee 24 Taas, Zee Punjabi and 24

Ghanta reported a growth of 8.8 per cent in revenues at Rs 751.3 million and a growth of 10.9 per cent in EBITDA at Rs 249.8 million. The EBITDA margins for the existing channels continue to be noteworthy at 33.3 per cent, up from 32.6 per cent on y-o-y basis.

Subhash Chandra, Chairman, ZNL, said, “The Indian economy has been facing headwinds of increased inflation, interest rate hikes and bearish markets forcing the GDP growth forecast to pare down to 7 per cent or so. My faith in the Indian economy for the long-term remains intact. While there are as many views of impending slowdown in the economy as there are of bounce back, I remain cautiously optimistic in the short run that the situation is likely to improve in the next few quarters. The company continues with its focus on innovative growth and I have full confidence that we will be able to come out stronger than most in the current year, in line with the trend of our past performances.”

He added, “As has been pending for a few years, the media industry has begun to consolidate. This is obvious from the various deals being announced over the past few months. We see this consolidation as a confident step forward towards making this industry more profitable.”

Punit Goenka, Managing Director, ZNL, said, “While the investment related policy decisions have been under pressure due to the current political environment, Parliament's clearing of cable digitisation signals the establishment's commitment to make the media industry more efficient. The ad industry, meanwhile, has been hit as advertisers have increasingly become choosy about their spends. The euphoria of sustained industry growth which was prevalent at the beginning of the year has been dampened considerably. However, ZNL has shown exceptional operational efficiencies and posted strong financial results for the quarter. Going forward, we hope to maintain the edge in our performance.”

Barun Das, CEO, ZNL, said, “We had sensed the slowdown in the industry by the beginning of the last quarter and made adjustments in our operations accordingly. Our top lines and strict vigil on our costs have resulted in our margins being strong at 24.6 per cent despite slowdown, which is likely to be an exception. With the Media Pro initiative settling down, our subscription revenue has shown growth towards the end of the quarter and it is a trend that is likely to continue. We remain confident regarding our ability to grow in the current financial year.”

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