D B Corp announces highest-ever nine-month performance, with revenue at Rs 1,854.4 crore

DB Corp Limited (DBCL), home to Dainik Bhaskar, Divya Bhaskar, Divya Marathi, and Saurashtra Samachar, announced its financial results for the quarter and nine months ended December 31, 2024.

The company posted advertisement revenue CAGR growth of 20% in the last 3 years, from Rs 1,008.4 crore in FY21 to Rs 1,752.4 crore in FY24. Similarly, PAT has delivered a 44% CAGR growth in the last 3 years, from Rs 141.4 crore in FY21 to Rs 425.5 crore in FY24.

D B Corp announces its highest-ever nine-month performance, with revenue at Rs 1,854.4 crore and PAT at Rs 318.7 crore. This performance is particularly noteworthy, considering the election-led high base of last year. Further, excluding the election-related ad benefits, Q3 FY25 registered healthy growth in ad revenue, EBIDTA, and PAT YOY, underscoring our leadership position.

"Dainik Bhaskar's market leadership in India's newspaper industry helped draw in a strong portfolio of advertisers across diverse sectors, aiding growth even on a high base. Traditional sectors continued their ad spend during the festive season, and while there has been some cooling off thereafter, the overall sentiments continue to remain optimistic," read the company press release. 

In the nine months of FY25, the top line grew by 1% YOY on a high base, while EBITDA grew by 4% YOY to Rs 525.2 crore, on account of stable newsprint prices and efficient cost management. Profit After Tax saw a 5% YOY growth to Rs 318.7 crore, showcasing sustained profitable growth. The print business EBIDTA margin expanded by 200 basis points to 32%.

The total revenue for Q3 FY2025 was Rs 655.6 crore, slightly lower than last year's Rs 664.8 crore, due to an election-driven high base. Advertising revenue stood at Rs 476.7 crore, and circulation revenue was Rs 119.5 crore, both marginally down from last year. EBITDA was Rs 190.2 crore (29% margin), supported by cost control and lower newsprint prices, while net profit came in at Rs 118.2 crore compared to Rs 124.0 crore. In the radio business, advertising revenue rose by 6% YOY to Rs 49.2 crore, and EBITDA increased by 2% to Rs 18.7 crore.

Radio business led industry growth with a 9% YOY increase in advertising revenue to Rs128.7 crore, and EBIDTA grew by 11% to Rs 45.1 crore.

"Newsprint prices continued to be soft in the nine months of FY25. Our average cost for newsprint was Rs 4,7600 per metric ton (PMT) in 9M FY25, down from Rs 5,2700 PMT in the previous year, resulting in a newsprint cost reduction of 14% YOY. As expected, newsprint prices remained stable in dollar terms in Q3 FY25 and are expected to remain soft for the next couple of quarters, subject to dollar exchange fluctuation," noted the company. 

Commenting on the performance for Q3 FY 2025, Mr. Sudhir Agarwal, Managing Director, DB Corp Ltd said, "Our performance in Q3FY25 contributing to the highest ever nine-month performance, even on the back of a high base is a confidence-booster for us and underscores our strategic focus on Content over Noise, Truth over Trends in our editorial strategy which has brought us rich dividends. The festive season saw strong demand from advertisers and while there has been some softening thereafter, we continue to remain optimistic. Our digital business continues to support our omni-channel market leadership.

With global economic performance remains sluggish, the Indian economy, driven by domestic consumption, continues to drive our key markets and advertisers while our circulation teams have been active in driving engagement. These pillars will augur well as we set to not only cement our leadership position, but continue to look for windows of opportunity to push growth.”