BENGALURU: Indian DTH major Dish TV India Ltd (Dish TV) reported 30.9 percent year-over-year (y-o-y) growth in consolidated operating profit (EBITDA) for the quarter ended 31 March 2020 (Q4-2020, quarter under review) as compared to the corresponding year ago quarter. Consolidated EBITDA for the year ended 31 March 2020 (FY 2020) was 3 percent higher than the previous year (FY 2019).
Dish TV reported operating revenue of Rs 3,556.34 crore for the year under review. For FY 2019, Dish TV had reported operating revenue of Rs 6,166.13 crore and programming and other costs of Rs 2,278.83 crore. Hence Dish TV’s adjusted operating revenue (operating revenue minus programming costs) works out to Rs 3,887,30 crore. With programming cost becoming a pass-through item in the new tariff regime, subscription and operating revenues for the quarter and fiscal are not comparable with the corresponding period last year says the company in its FY 2020 and Q4 2020 earnings release. For FY 2020 and FY 2019, consolidated operating EBITDA numbers were Rs 2,105.97 crore (59.2 percent of operating revenue) and Rs 2,044.27 crore (33.2 percent of operating revenue and 52.6 percent of adjusted operating revenue) respectively.
Dish TV reported operating revenue of Rs 869.06 crore for Q4 2020 and Rs 1,398.75 crore for Q4 2019. Dish TV ‘s consolidated EBIDTA for Q4 2020 and Q4 2019 was Rs 543.22 crore (62.5 percent of operating revenue) and Rs 414.97 crore (29.7 percent of operating revenue) respectively.
Profit before tax and exceptional items for FY 2020 was Rs 128.15 crore and for FY 2019 profit before tax and exceptional items was Rs 26.85 crore. For Q4 2020 PBT without exceptional items was Rs 55.53 crore, while Dish TV had reported a loss before tax and exceptional items of Rs 82.34 crore for Q4 2019.
The company has reported exceptional items for FY 2020 in the standalone financial results which included (a). Impairment of goodwill: R. 1,91,5.50 crore (FY 2019 - Rs 1,543 crore) and (b). Impairment of loans/advances to Dish TV Lanka Pvt Ltd (a subsidiary Company): Rs 3.66 crore (net) (FY 2019 - Rs 141.99 crore). Dish TV says that the goodwill acquired pursuant to merger of the company with the erstwhile Videocon d2H Ltd is periodically tested for impairment to ensure that it is carried at no more than its recoverable amount.
Due to these exceptional items, Dish TV reported a loss of Rs 1.654.84 crore for FY 2020 and a loss of Rs 1,163.41 crore for FY 2019. Losses due to exceptional items in Q4 2020 and Q4 2019 were Rs 1,456.25 crore and Rs 1,361.30 crore respectively.
Let us look at the other numbers reported by Dish TV for FY 2020 and Q4 2020
For FY 2020, total expenditure was Rs 3,441.80 crore. The major expenses in FY 2020 were operating expenses of Rs 787.30 crore; employee benefits expense of Rs 193.11 crore; finance costs of Rs 565.22 crore and other expenses of Rs 466.51 crore.
For Q4 2020, total expenditure was Rs 816.49 crore. The major expenses in Q4 2020 were operating expenses of Rs 172.10 crore; employee benefits expense of Rs 58.13 crore; Finance costs of Rs 143.30 crore and other expenses of Rs 95.32 crore.
Though y-o-y, finance costs in Q4 2020 were down 2.9 percent as compared to Rs 147.62 crore in Q4 2019, they were up 4.7 percent higher quarter-on-quarter (q-o-q) as compared to Rs 136.91 crore in the immediate trailing quarter Q3 2020. Dish TV said in its earnings release for FY 2020 and Q4 2020 that it has paid balance of the overdue loan amount of Rs. 250 crore during the quarter. The company paid Rs. 445.90 crore in total during the quarter thus reducing its overall debt to Rs. 1817.50 crore at the end of fiscal 2020 as compared to Rs. 2769.50 crore at the close of fiscal 2019.
Company Speak
Dish TV group CEO Anil Dua said, “Though our revenues were positively impacted
by the higher number of win backs and recharges during the initial days of the lockdown, we could not be complacent during such trying times and went all out to scan every cost-centre for greater operational efficiencies. Our all-time high EBITDA and EBITDA margin recorded during the quarter was a result of operational resilience demonstrated by the business.”
