Latest news with #SapphireFoods
Business Upturn
23-07-2025
- Business
- Business Upturn
Sapphire Foods Q1 Results: Revenue up 8% YoY to Rs 776 crore, net loss of 1.73 crore
Sapphire Foods India Limited reported its financial results for the quarter ended June 30, 2025, posting an increase in revenue but slipping into losses due to rising costs. For Q1FY26, the company's revenue from operations rose 8.15% year-on-year to ₹7,768.28 million, compared to ₹7,182.89 million in the same quarter last year. Including other income, the total income stood at ₹7,836.08 million, up 8.29% YoY. However, the rise in expenses outpaced revenue growth. Total expenses for the quarter grew 10.36% to ₹7,854.52 million, against ₹7,117.19 million in Q1FY25. Major expense heads included employee benefits at ₹1,023.27 million (up from ₹949.22 million) and cost of materials consumed at ₹2,533.42 million (up from ₹2,256.09 million). Consequently, the company reported a loss before tax of ₹18.44 million, compared to a profit of ₹118.32 million a year ago. After accounting for taxes, the net loss stood at ₹17.38 million, versus a net profit of ₹81 million in Q1FY25. The management attributed the decline in profitability to higher input and operating costs, despite steady revenue growth supported by demand. Sapphire Foods continues to operate as a leading franchisee of global QSR brands in India and other South Asian markets, with a focus on expanding its footprint and optimizing costs to improve margins in the coming quarters. Ahmedabad Plane Crash Aditya Bhagchandani serves as the Senior Editor and Writer at Business Upturn, where he leads coverage across the Business, Finance, Corporate, and Stock Market segments. With a keen eye for detail and a commitment to journalistic integrity, he not only contributes insightful articles but also oversees editorial direction for the reporting team.
Reuters
23-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
KFC India operator Sapphire posts quarterly loss as expenses rise
July 23 (Reuters) - Sapphire Foods India ( opens new tab, which operates Pizza Hut and KFC restaurants in the country, reported a quarterly loss on Wednesday, as expenses rose and fast-food restaurant chains faced stiff competition from local cafes and online kitchens. The restaurant operator posted a net loss of 18 million rupees ($208,345.39) for the first quarter ended June 30, compared to a profit of 85.2 million rupees a year earlier, according to a regulatory filing. Total expenses rose 10.4%. Popular fast-food chains including Pizza Hut and KFC have been struggling to maintain same-store sales growth in India, as consumers wary of high cost of living cut back on dining out and ordering in. They are turning to heavy discounting to draw more diners, with KFC pushing its nine-piece fried chicken for 299 rupees ($3.50) in a deal that it called "epic savers" and Pizza Hut offering a free Pepsi with select pizzas during the quarter. Still, the efforts fell short at Sapphire Foods, with same-store sales flat at KFC and down 8% at Pizza Hut in India. However, its move to open dozens of news stores in the 12 months to June-end helped Sapphire Foods, one of the two Yum Brands (YUM.N), opens new tab franchisees in India, push its revenue higher by 8.1% to 7.77 billion rupees. ($1 = 86.3950 Indian rupees)
Reuters
04-07-2025
- Business
- Reuters
Yum Brands in talks to facilitate merger of its two Indian partners, ET reports
July 4 (Reuters) - Yum Brands (YUM.N), opens new tab, which owns KFC and Pizza Hut, is in talks to facilitate a merger of its Indian franchisee partners Devyani International ( opens new tab and Sapphire Foods ( opens new tab, the Economic Times reported on Friday, citing sources. Shares of Sapphire Foods rose 7.5% while Devyani was trading 2.8% higher as of 1:40 p.m. IST. The development comes at a time when most fast food franchisees across India are struggling with a slowdown in same-store sales growth and margin expansion, as consumers reeling under high cost of living cut back on dining out and ordering in. Sapphire reported a 6% sequential decline in KFC and 13% sequential decline in Pizza Hut's average daily sales for the quarter ended March, while Devyani's KFC same-store sales saw a decline of 6.1% in the fourth quarter year-on-year. However, its Pizza Hut same-store sales grew 1%. The talks could see Sapphire Foods merge into Devyani International via a share swap, with Sapphire shareholders potentially receiving one Devyani share for every three held, the newspaper reported, citing one source. The deal may involve Devyani acquiring Sapphire's KFC and Pizza Hut franchise rights, or consolidating all KFC franchisee stores in India under Devyani, the report added. Devyani's market capitalization is at 211.4 billion rupees ($2.48 billion), while Sapphire's stood at 110.8 billion rupees, according to data from National Stock Exchange of India. Devyani had more than 2,000 stores across its network in India, Thailand, Nigeria and Nepal, as of March 31. Sapphire had 836 KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants in India and 127 Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants in Sri Lanka as of March end. Devyani and Sapphire did not respond to requests for comment, while U.S.-based Yum Brands was not available for comment outside regular business hours. ($1 = 85.3580 Indian rupees)
Mint
04-07-2025
- Business
- Mint
Sapphire Foods India shares rise over 10% on reports of merger with Devyani International
Sapphire Foods India share price jumped over 10 per cent to ₹ 352.05 on National Stock Exchange (NSE) on Friday, following a report that Yum! Brands, the U.S.-based parent company of KFC and Pizza Hut, is in discussions to merge its two Indian franchise partners, Devyani International Ltd (DIL) and Sapphire Foods. Sapphire Foods India shares opened at ₹ 331.90 apiece on July 4, as compared to previous close of ₹ 320.55. The stock has gained over 7 per cent in past five trading sessions and nearly 11 per cent in a month. Meanwhile, Devyani International share price climbed nearly 3.14 per cent to ₹ 173.68 on Friday following the merger report. The stock has descended over 13 per cent in six months, however, has gained 3 per cent in a year. Both Devyani International and Sapphire Foods India currently operate KFC and Pizza Hut outlets in India as franchise partners of Yum! Brands. According to a report by The Economic Times, the U.S.-based company is now exploring the possibility of merging its two Indian partners into a single entity. As part of this potential merger, Devyani International might take over all franchise rights of KFC and Pizza Hut from Sapphire Foods, or alternatively, all KFC outlets across India could be brought under Devyani's brand umbrella, the report stated. A share swap ratio of 1:3 is being considered for the merger, meaning Sapphire Foods shareholders would receive one share of Devyani International for every three shares they hold. Sapphire Foods posted a consolidated profit after tax (PAT) of ₹ 2.024 crore in the fourth quarter of FY25, showing a slight year-on-year decline from ₹ 2.039 crore recorded in the same period last year. The company's revenue rose by 13 per cent YoY to ₹ 711 crore in Q4FY25, driven primarily by strong performances from KFC India and Pizza Hut Sri Lanka. During the quarter, six new KFC outlets were launched, bringing the total number of restaurants to 963 as of March 31, 2025. Consolidated restaurant EBITDA saw a marginal 1 per cent YoY decline, with the margin at 12 per cent. Adjusted EBITDA fell 7 per cent to ₹ 50.8 crore, resulting in an adjusted EBITDA margin of 7.2 per cent. Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, not Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
Time of India
04-07-2025
- Business
- Time of India
Yum! craves Devyani-Sapphire combo
Live Events (You can now subscribe to our (You can now subscribe to our Economic Times WhatsApp channel New Delhi | Mumbai: Yum! Brands Inc, the American owner of fast-food restaurant chains KFC and Pizza Hut , is in talks to facilitate a merger of Devyani International Ltd (DIL) and Sapphire Foods India Ltd—its publicly-traded franchisee partners in the country, people aware of the developments negotiations could result in Sapphire Foods getting merged into DIL through a share swap deal. This would entail the latter either acquiring the franchisee rights of KFC and Pizza Hut from Sapphire Foods, or all of KFC's franchisee stores in India getting consolidated under DIL, the people of the persons cited above said a 1:3 share swap ratio is being prepared with Sapphire shareholders getting one share of DIL for every three owned. This could not be independently owned by billionaire entrepreneur Ravi Jaipuria's RJ Corp, currently has a market capitalisation of Rs 19,935.61 crore, compared to Sapphire Foods' Rs 10,313 crore."There are direct synergies for DIL, since it is owned by PepsiCo's bottling partner Varun Beverages Ltd (VBL),' a second person listed VBL and DIL are the flagship companies of RJ Corp.'The negotiations are being led by DIL. RJ Corp is looking to reduce dependence on soft drinks which has a limited portfolio compared to fast foods,' the person said. 'The restaurant and café businesses have tremendous growth opportunities to scale through multiple formats such as dine-in, deliveries, take-aways, and food courts, despite the ongoing slowdown in discretionary spending,' he Corp, Sapphire Foods, and Yum! Brands did not respond to email the larger of the two, runs more than 2,030 stores across India, Thailand, Nigeria and Nepal. Sapphire operates 963 KFC, Pizza Hut and Taco Bell restaurants across India and Sri Lanka, as of March 31, 2025, according to the websites of both the Indian companies are facing slowing growth as inflation-hit consumers cut back on discretionary spending, mirroring the larger trend in the food services from KFC and Pizza Hut, DIL is the exclusive franchisee for British coffee chain Costa Coffee in India. Its own brands include South Indian cuisine chain Vaango, The Food Street food courts, and Cream Bell up in September 2015, Sapphire Foods was led by a group of private equity firms Samara Capital, Goldman Sachs, CX Partners and IDI Emerging Markets. Over the years, most of the earlier PE investors have exited, selling their stakes in the public market. As of March 31, 2025, shareholders in Sapphire Foods include Sagista Realty Advisors, Mirae Asset Great Consumer Fund and Franklin India Smaller Companies Fund among other investors, according to disclosures by the company.A Bernstein Research report noted that India's quick service restaurant (QSR) sector could see a turnaround this fiscal year, led by gradual demand recovery, after a tough FY25, marked by declining margins as urban consumers cut discretionary spending, and proliferation of regional and hyperlocal boutique-style said that 'it expects consumer demand to pick up gradually in the first half and materially in the second half of the year, with overall return to positive mid-high single digit same-store sales growth across players.'For the March quarter, DIL sharply widened its net loss to Rs 14.74 crore, from Rs 7.47 crore a year earlier. Revenue from operations grew 16% to Rs 1,212.59 KFC division reported a 12% on-year growth in revenue in the March quarter, with same-store sales or retail sales at stores that have been open for at least one year at less than 1%. For Pizza Hut, Sapphire posted 5% on-year growth during the quarter, and same-store sales growth of 1%.On a standalone basis, Sapphire Foods plunged to a net loss of Rs 3.66 crore for the quarter, compared to a year-earlier net profit of Rs 2.14 crore. The company reported overall revenue of Rs 711 crore in Q4FY25, growing 13% DIL has rights to operate KFC and Pizza Hut brands mainly in North and East India, Sapphire's footprint is largely focused on South and West India. Both also have common franchisee zones such as airport stores in select states like Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, and Karnataka in formats such as delivery-only, takeaways, and Purohit, group chief executive of Sapphire Foods, said in a recent analyst call to discuss March quarter earnings that starting from that quarter, the chain 'has not been able to invest in mass media advertising (for Pizza Hut)…That's resulted in an impact on our transactions. That's arising because of a difference of view between us and our sister franchisee (Devyani) on marketing strategy and investments on advertising.'He said 'while Yum is aligned with investing (on Pizza Hut ads) similar to us, the difference in opinion has meant that we've not been able to advertise in common markets.'Responding to an analyst query on when Sapphire Foods expected a resolution to the differences, Purohit said it may take one to two Yum! Brands reported over $65 billion in total system sales in 2024, operating 61,000 restaurants in 155 countries with 1,500 franchise partners, according to its website. Earlier in February, its shares saw their biggest gain in nearly five years after December 2024 sales surpassed expectations, buoyed by growth at the Taco Bell fast-food chain.
