Hindustan Media Ventures Limited

Consolidated Financial Performance

Q4 FY26 Performance:

  • Total Revenue: INR 558 crore (down 2% YoY)
  • EBITDA: INR 131 crore (up 5% YoY)
  • EBITDA Margin: 23% (expanded by 100 basis points)
  • PAT: INR 96 crore
  • PAT Margin: 17%

Full Year FY26 Performance:

  • Total Revenue: Approximately flat YoY
  • EBITDA: INR 298 crore (up 8% YoY)
  • EBITDA Margin: Expanded by 100 basis points
  • PAT: INR 153 crore
  • PAT Margin: 8%
  • Net Cash Position: Remains robust, north of INR 1,000 crore

Business Segment Performance

Print Business:

Q4 FY26:

  • Advertising Revenue: INR 313 crore (up 10% YoY)
  • Circulation Revenue: INR 51 crore (up 4% YoY)
  • Operating Revenue: INR 427 crore
  • Operating EBITDA: INR 97 crore
  • Operating EBITDA Margin: 23%

Full Year FY26:

  • Advertising Revenue: INR 1,148 crore (up 8% YoY)
  • Circulation Revenue: Nearly flat
  • Operating Revenue: INR 1,500 crore (up 8% YoY)
  • Operating EBITDA: INR 208 crore
  • Operating EBITDA Margin: 14%

Print English:

  • Q4 Advertising Revenue: INR 172 crore (up 9% YoY)
  • FY26 Advertising Revenue: INR 644 crore (up 8% YoY)
  • Q4 Circulation Revenue: INR 13 crore (up 13% YoY)
  • FY26 Circulation Revenue: INR 53 crore (marginal decline of 5% YoY)

Print Hindi:

  • Q4 Advertising Revenue: INR 142 crore (up 12% YoY)
  • FY26 Advertising Revenue: INR 504 crore (up 8% YoY)
  • Q4 Circulation Revenue: INR 38 crore (virtually flat)
  • FY26 Circulation Revenue: INR 155 crore (virtually flat)

Radio Business:

The segment faced a tough year with revenue declining on a full-year basis, impacted by a high base from prior year's event-led revenue and larger industry-wide issues.

Q4 FY26:

  • Operating Revenue: INR 43 crore
  • Operating EBITDA: Negative INR 7 crore

Full Year FY26:

  • Operating Revenue: INR 140 crore
  • Operating EBITDA: Negative INR 22 crore

As part of an ongoing streamlining, the company has surrendered six non-viable radio licenses (five loss-making frequencies and one previously loss-making frequency) to the Government of India to sharpen the network footprint and improve business profitability. All remaining frequencies are stated to be profitable.

Digital Business (Shine and Mosaic):

Segment revenues, restated for continued operations, were held steady for both the quarter and the full year.

Q4 FY26:

  • Operating Revenue: INR 39 crore (flat YoY)
  • Operating EBITDA: Negative INR 2 crore

Full Year FY26:

  • Operating Revenue: INR 155 crore (flat YoY)
  • Operating EBITDA: Negative INR 8 crore
  • Operating EBITDA Margin: Negative 5%

The company has decided to discontinue the 'OTTplay' business, effective 1st April 2026, as part of a focus on profitable growth. Subscriptions sold on or prior to 31st March 2026 will be serviced for their remaining life (typically 1-6 months), which may result in marginal future losses. The business was not capital-heavy, and management stated there is no residual value from its sale.

Management Commentary & Strategic Updates

The Chairperson's commentary highlighted a "period of decisive transformation" characterized by meaningful improvement in profitability. Key points included:

  • Print Business: Performance was strong, driven by advertising-led revenue growth across English and Hindi mastheads. A primary concern is rising newsprint costs, amplified by a weakening rupee and global supply chain disruptions.
  • Growth Levers: The core Print business remains the primary focus, with investments directed towards gaining copy share in key markets, financed by yield improvements. Future investments will also be prioritized behind Digital businesses (referencing Digicontent Ltd.).
  • Cash Utilization: The substantial cash pile (INR 1,000+ crore) is intended for investing in "businesses of tomorrow" to create long-term sustainable value. The Board discusses the cash pile regularly, but there are no current plans for a shareholder return.

Key Q&A Highlights

Advertising Revenue Growth:

Management confirmed that the double-digit growth in ad revenue (9% in English, 12% in Hindi) was primarily driven by yield improvement (pricing), with volumes remaining largely flat.

Other Operating Income (HMVL):

The significant growth in other operating income (approx. 100% in Q4) was attributed to forfeiture revenue from contracts in the AFE (Advertising for Equity) business, where contractual revenue is forfeited if not received within a specified period.

Circulation Revenue:

The 13% growth in English circulation revenue in Q4 was confirmed to be primarily due to an increase in the number of copies sold as part of a strategy to gain copy share in key markets, with realizations per copy remaining largely flat.

AFE (Advertising for Equity) Portfolio:

The company's policy is to be an "active seller" of AFE assets to maximize value for the organization when the opportunity arises, but it is not a "desperate seller." These are non-cash transactions involving ad space, not cash investments. The investment of ~INR 22 crore in Assetvault Limited (brand AasaanWill) is one such AFE investment.

Other Income Decline:

The decrease in Other Income from INR 218 crore in FY25 to INR 168 crore in FY26 was primarily attributed to mark-to-market losses on the company's substantial treasury portfolio due to high yield curves, alongside other smaller reasons.

Exceptional Items:

The FY26 exceptional loss of INR 114 crore from continuing operations included a significant item consequent to new labour codes announced by the Government of India. Management does not anticipate further material exceptional losses from business closures (Radio, OTTplay) going forward.

Risks and Challenges

The management explicitly cited the following headwinds:

  • Rising newsprint costs, amplified by a weakening rupee.
  • The prevailing global environment of supply chain disruptions, trade policy uncertainty, and geopolitical volatility.
  • The radio business continues to be under pressure from larger industry-wide issues.