ITC is estimated to report a standalone net profit of Rs 4,699 crore for the quarter ended December 2022, which translates to an increase of 13.1 per cent compared with the corresponding period a year ago, according to Zee Business research. The cigarettes-to-hotels conglomerate, ITC, will report its financial results on Friday, February 3. 

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Kolkata-based ITC's financial results come days after the government proposed to raise certain taxes on cigarettes in its Budget for the year ending March 2024.

Investors will closely look out for the management's commentary on demand, margins and inflation.   

ITC's revenue is estimated to grow five per cent to Rs 16,652 crore compared with the year-ago period, according to the research.ITC shares touched a record high on Thursday, continuing a rally that began the previous day after an initial knee-jerk reaction. 

Analysts say the higher taxes have been long overdue and factored in by the market, and form only a portion of ITC's revenue.

In an interaction with Zee Business Managing Editor Anil Singhvi on Wednesday — the day Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman unveiled the Budget 2023, Nirmal Bang Institutional Equities CEO Rahul Arora said that the government's move will only impact a section of ITC's portfolio.

According to Zee Business research, ITC is likely to report 10-11 per cent growth in cigarette volumes for the quarter. The analysts project strong growth in the company's FMCG business and 40 per cent expansion in the hotels segment, but warn of minor weakness in its agri sales unit owing to a high ase. 

The cigarette maker's margin — a key measure of profitability for a business — is pegged at 35.6 per cent for the three-month period, up 350 basis points on a year-on-year basis, according to Zee Business research. 

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