 "paper, industry, investment, JK Paper")
BENGALURU (Reuters) - India's JK Paper Ltd on Monday reported its profit more than doubled in the third quarter, on the back of higher demand for copier papers and packaging boards from schools and offices post-pandemic.
The paper producer said its consolidated net profit after tax for the quarter ended Dec. 31 was at 3.29 billion rupees ($39.79 million), from 1.50 billion rupees a year earlier.
Demand for products like documentation papers, photocopy and multipurpose papers remained strong during the quarter, as offices followed work-from-office and hybrid models after the lockdowns were lifted.
The company's revenue from its paper and board business surged 59.6% to 16.33 billion rupees in the quarter. Overall net revenue from operations jumped nearly 61% to 16.43 billion rupees.
"Higher capacity utilization and growth in sales volume across all segments helped the company to improve its market share and deliver better performance," Harsh Pati Singhania, vice chairman and managing director at JK Paper, said in an exchange filing.
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JK Paper-owned Sirpur Paper Mills contributed significantly to the company's overall profitable growth, Singhania added.
The company's market share in the copier paper and packaging segments has been growing due to strong demand from offices and shift to sustainable alternatives for packaging, analysts said.
JK Paper has also been expanding the business through acquisitions, including its purchase of 85% stake each in Horizon Packs and Securipax Packaging last year, with the remaining 15% to be bought within the next three years.
The company also declared an interim dividend of four rupees per share to be paid on or before March 7.
($1 = 82.6750 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Dimpal Gulwani; editing by Eileen Soreng)
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