India's Raymond Q1 profit jumps on one-off gain from consumer business sale

BENGALURU, Aug 11 (Reuters) - Indian textiles maker Raymond (RYMD.NS) reported on Friday a multifold jump in first-quarter profit, helped by an exceptional gain from the sale of its consumer business.

Raymonds consolidated profit was 10.65 billion rupees ($128.7 million) for the three months ended June 30, compared with 809 million rupees a year earlier.

In April, Raymond agreed to sell its consumer business Raymond Consumer Care including brands such as Park Avenue deodorant and Kamasutra condoms to Godrej Consumer Products (GOCP.NS) for $345 million in a bid to turn debt-free.

The latest quarter included a gain of 9.83 billion rupees on the sale.

The deal, completed in May, left Raymond with real estate, engineering and denim production businesses.

Profit barring the gain, exceptional items, and taxes declined over 4% to 1.12 billion rupees, the company said.

Revenue grew 2.5% to 17.71 billion rupees, while expenses increased nearly 5% due to higher raw material costs.

Analysts expect Indian consumer goods makers to post margin benefits in the next few quarters, with prices of commodities such as packing materials easing.

“Going forward, we are optimistic as festive and wedding season will set in during the second half of the year giving an impetus to the consumer demand across the country,\” Chairman and Managing Director Gautam Hari Singhania said in a statement.

Shares of Raymond rose as much as 2.5% after reporting results.

($1 = 82.7390 Indian rupees)