Shares of Indian Railway Catering and Tourism Corporation (IRCTC) fell by nearly 5% following a report of declining margins and sequential revenue drops for the quarter ending March 31.
IRCTC, the sole provider of food services on trains and online railway ticket booking for Indian Railways, posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 284.2 crore for the January-March period. This marks a modest year-on-year increase of 1.9%.
The company’s financial performance fell short of expectations. Analysts had predicted a consolidated net profit of Rs 311 crore and revenue of Rs 1,146 crore for the quarter.
Despite the overall revenue decline, IRCTC saw growth in several business segments. Revenue from its catering business rose by 34.1% to Rs 530.8 crore. The internet ticketing unit’s revenue increased by 16% to Rs 342.4 crore. The Rail Neer packaged drinking water unit reported a 13.1% rise in revenue to Rs 83 crore, and the tourism unit saw an 11.6% increase to Rs 154.6 crore.
By 10:25 am, IRCTC shares were trading 4.79% lower at ₹1,031.20 on the NSE.
