Tata Tea: Annual results for 2004-05
June 9, 2005

Annual results - 2004-05
Tata Tea:

• Turnover at Rs 950 cr up by 13%;
• PBT from operations at Rs 112 cr up by 72 %;
• Record PAT at Rs 129 cr up 41%
  

Consolidated:

• Turnover at Rs 3,077 cr up by 4%;
• PBT before exceptional items at Rs 357 cr up by 25%;
• PAT at Rs 215 cr up 10%;
  

Tata Tea announced its results for 2004-05 this afternoon. The company's consolidated world wide turnover for the year was Rs 3076.73 crore, an improvement by 4 per cent over the preceding year's turnover. The consolidated profit before tax prior to non-recurring items for the company was Rs 356.53 crore, an improvement of 25 per cent over the preceding year's profits. The profit after tax at Rs 215.47 crore was 10 per cent higher than that of the preceding year. The results of the previous year ended March 31, 2004 included the performance of Tata Tea GB (the company's 98.58 per cent UK subsidiary) for a period of thirteen months. These have been restated to twelve months to make them comparable to the current year. The turnover reflects a strong volume growth in India and stable performance in other markets. Profitability is considerably higher reflecting improvements in cost control and operational efficiencies. As much as 85 per cent of the company's consolidated world wide turnover was contributed by its branded tea operations.

The stand alone Tata Tea results reported income from operations for 2004-05 of Rs 899.63 crore, an improvement of 15 per cent over the previous year, driven by a strong performance in brand sales. The profit before tax from operations of Rs 111.73 crore was 72 per cent higher than the profit earned during the previous year despite the losses in plantation operations mainly in South India. The profit after tax of Rs 128.92 crore were 41 per cent higher than the preceding year and a record for the company. The EPS for the stand alone company for 2004/05 was Rs 22.93, up by 41 per cent.

Under Indian GAAP, The Tetley Group's (the company's 98.58 per cent subsidiary) income from operations on a like to like basis was Rs 1940.30 crore for the financial year 2004-05 as against Rs 1938.94 crore for the preceding year. The profit before tax and exceptional items was Rs 173.64 crore, 13 per cent higher than the preceding year.