Profit before tax marginally declined to Rs 116.77 crore in Q2 FY25, compared to Rs 117.59 crore recorded in the second quarter of FY24.

During the quarter, EBITDA stood at Rs 131.9 crore, up 1% from Rs 130.9 crore in Q2 FY24. The EBITDA margin also saw a slight increase, rising to 26.9% from 26.8% in the same quarter last year.

In the revenue breakdown, the consumer ware segment recorded Rs 342.1 crore, registering a 5% YoY growth. Revenue from writing instruments stood at Rs 69.8 crore, a decline of 15% YoY, while revenue from moulded furniture and allied products stood at Rs 78.2 crore, down 2% YoY.

On half year basis, the company’s consolidated net profit grew 4.32% to Rs 164.23 crore in H1 FY25 as compared to Rs 157.42 crore recorded in H1 FY24. However, revenue from operations increased 3.12% YoY to Rs 990.72 crore in H1 FY25.

Pradeep Rathod, chairman & managing director, Cello World, said, “In H1FY25, the company delivered steady performance by demonstrating consistent revenue growth and maintaining profitability despite several headwinds on export demand, particularly for writing instruments. Consumerware business grew by 5%, and the moulded furniture business grew by 7% on a year-on-year basis. Writing Instruments business de-grew by 8% mainly due to lower exports.

Our focus on operational excellence continues to deliver robust cash generation. This operational rigor gives us the flexibility to navigate external challenges while staying on track with our strategic objectives. We have seen encouraging growth trends in our alternative sales channels, particularly online and modern trade. We see these channels as key drivers for capturing growth across the country, especially for our consumer-ware division.

Looking ahead, the second half of FY25 has started on a positive note, with strong sales momentum in October. Given the solid off-take in the early part of the Q3 due to the robust festive season demand, we remain confident in our ability to achieve mid teen growth for FY25. We have commissioned the state-of-the-art glassware manufacturing facility in Falna, Rajasthan. The facility has initiated trial runs, with commercial production set to follow. With this, Cello becomes the only domestic consumer products company with a presence across all material types to have an in-house glassware capacity in India.”

Cello World is a prominent player in the consumerware market in India with presence in the consumer houseware, writing instruments and stationery, and moulded furniture and allied products and consumer glassware categories. It operates 13 manufacturing facilities across five locations in India and is currently establishing a glassware manufacturing facility in Rajasthan.

The scrip slipped 3.31% to Rs 813.55 on the BSE.