An interior view of an empty INOX multiplex cinema hall.
Credit: Reuters Photo
Bengaluru: PVR Inox reported a bigger-than-expected fourth-quarter loss on Tuesday, hurt by a lack of interest in Bollywood releases.
The company reported a consolidated net loss of 1.3 billion rupees ($15.6 million) for the March quarter, missing analysts' estimate of a loss of 835.9 million rupees, as per LSEG data.
The company was formed by a merger of PVR and Inox in February 2023, and the results are not comparable year-over-year.
PVR Inox had posted a profit of 128 million rupees last quarter.
The quarter ended March 2024 marks PVR Inox's weakest quarter in the year, the company said.
The company flagged "significant volatility" in box office collections, with demand muted despite major Bollywood releases like Fighter, Shaitaan and Article 370.
It also added that the ongoing general election has impacted the flow of new releases, and that expects it to stabilize by mid-June.
Its occupancy slipped to 22.6 per cent from 25.2 per cent in the December quarter.
Coupled with these factors, it saw a 2 per cent drop in average ticket price, prompting a near 19 per cent sequential drop in revenue.
During the year, the company opened 130 new screens and closed 85 screens. The company said plans to shut down underperforming cinemas to reduce costs.
It also said it would pursue box office initiatives like screening alternate events like film festivals and sports, and was evaluating monetising real estate assets in a bid to become net debt free over the next few years.
PVR Inox's shares, which were up 1 per cent ahead of results, dropped 2.3 per cent post results. ($1 = 83.5106 Indian rupees)