RIL Q4 results highlights: Reliance Jio adds 1.09 crore subscribers; capex, net debt fall

5 key highlights: Reliance Industries on Monday reported a 1.8 per cent year-on-year drop in net profit for the March quarter on a 11.3 per cent jump in sales. This is against a 5-10 per cent fall in profit and double-digit growth in sales that analysts suggested ahead of its quarterly results.

"We believe the company is well-versed in dealing with short-term headwinds and continues to perform well across all business segments, with expectations of further improvement once the global macro environment is stable," said Shreyansh Shah, Research Analyst at StoxBox.

Here are key highlights of RIL Q4 results:

Jio 5G subscribers at 10.8 crore
Reliance Jio Infocomm said it maintained its network leadership as it outpaced competition, adding 1.09 crore net subscribers in Q4FY24. The monthly churn was 1.5 per cent. Overall, Jio's subscribers rose 9.7 per cent YoY to 48.18 crore from 43.93 crore YoY.Jio Platforms said it had the largest 5G subscriber base for any operator outside China. Jio said it rolled out its True5G network across India, with 108 million+ subscribers migrated to Jio’s 5G network. The Jio True 5G network now carries 28 per cent of Jio’s wireless data traffic, with the entire 5G data being carried on Jio’s own 5G+4G combo core.

Akash M Ambani, Chairman of Reliance Jio Infocomm said: “Jio continues to maintain its network leadership and offer innovative digital solutions to multiple customer cohorts. This is driving consistent outperformance in terms of subscriber additions and engagement levels. Continued acceleration in growth of JioAirFiber subscriber base and ramp-up of digital services will sustain industry-leading growth for Jio."

Capital expenditure falls
Data showed RIL's capex fell to Rs 23,207 crore in the March quarter against Rs 30,102 crore in December and Rs 44,413 crore in the year-ago quarter. Capital Expenditure for the year ended March 31, 2024, was ₹ 131,769 crore ($ 15.8 billion) with
investments in pan-India 5G roll-out, expansion of retail infrastructure and new energy business. This excludes amount incurred towards spectrum and is adjusted for capital advances and regrouping of assets.

Net debt falls, outstanding debt rises
RIL said its net debt fell to Rs 1,16,281 crore at the end of March quarter against Rs 1,19,372 crore at the end of December quarter and Rs 1,25,766 crore at the end of March 2023 quarter. That said, outstanding debt rose to Rs 3,24,622 crore at Q4-end against Rs 3,11,743 at Q3-end and Rs 3,13,966 crore at Q3-FY23 end.

Reliance Retail opens 562 stores, Q4 footfall at 27.2 cr

Reliance Retail saw 27.2 crore footfalls for the quarter across formats. A total of 562 new stores were opened for the quarter, RIL said. "The business expanded its store network with 562 new store openings with gross area addition of 7.8 million square feet. The quarter recorded footfalls of over 272 million across formats, a growth of 24.2 per cent YoY," Reliance Retail said.

It said its registered customer base crossed a milestone of 30 crore, making Reliance Retail one of the most preferred retailers in the country. "During the quarter, the business acquired India business of Kiko Milano and intellectual property including trademarks, recipe etc. of sugar-boiled confectionery from Ravalgaon," it said.

Commitment to New Energy biz

CMD Mukesh Ambani said his company remined committed its projects and initiatives, including those in the New Energy segment, which will bolster the company, and help it deliver sustainable growth for the future. On its energy divisions, Ambani said strong demand for fuels globally, and limited flexibility in refining system worldwide, supported margins and profitability of the O2C segment.

"Downstream chemical industry experienced increasingly challenging market conditions through the year. Despite headwinds, maintaining leading product positions and feedstock flexibility through our operating model that prioritises cost management, we delivered a resilient performance. The KG-D6 block has achieved 30 MMSCMD of production and now accounts for 30% of
India’s domestic gas production," he said.