WESTLIFE

Westlife Foodworld Ltd WEST.NS:

• WESTLIFE FOODWORLD LTD - ELEVATES AKSHAY JATIA AS CEO

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Further company coverage: WEST.NS

** Indian restaurant operator stocks jump between 3% and 10% after slew of demand-boosting measures in union budget

** Zomato ZOMT.NS and Swiggy SWIG.NS soar 6.5% and 7%, respectively

** Both were hit hard by cooling demand over last two months

** Among restaurant operators, Pizza Hut and KFC India franchisee Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS gains the most; Burger King's Indian operator Restaurant Brands Asia's RESR.NS up 3%, rising the least

** Domino's franchisee Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS gains 5%, Pizza Hut's other Indian operator Devyani Internatinal adds ~7%; McDonald's franchisee Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS advances 8.8%

** Finance Minister Nirmala Sitharaman says those earning up to 1.28 mln rupees ($14,791.53)/year won't have to pay any taxes

($1 = 86.5360 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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Jan 29 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, the operator of McDonald's MCD.N in India, reported a 59% drop in third-quarter profit on Wednesday, as cost-conscious consumers cut back on discretionary spending amid still-high food prices.

The restaurant operator's consolidated profit after tax stood at 70.1 million rupees ($810,123.66) for the three months to Dec. 31, lower than 172.5 million rupees a year ago.

($1 = 86.5300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ananta Agarwal in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

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** Macquarie Equity Research anticipates uptick in demand for KFC in India, expects a turnaround for Pizza Hut, and a value-based recovery for McDonald's chains

** Devyani International DEVY.NS and Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS operate KFC and Pizza Hut chains in India, while Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS operates McDonald's

** Macquarie initiates coverage on DEVY and SAPI with "outperform" while reiterating the same on WEST

** There is near-term risk for KFC's same-store sales growth, but focus on value, strong competitive position in chicken, favorable base are expected to drive steady recovery - Macquarie

** Adds, pace of KFC store additions likely to be slower in SAPI vs DEVY due to longer gestation for chicken adoption in SAPI's KFC geographies

** Expects healthy EBITDA growth for DEVY in KFC given competitive position in chicken category

** For WEST, expects continued growth in footfalls buoyed by focus on value and launch of McCrispy chicken platform

** DEVY up 4.5% currently, while WEST up 0.2%; SAPI down 0.5%

** SAPI gained 16% in 2024, while DEVY and WEST shed 6% and 3%, respectively

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru)

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** Shares of India's McDonalds's operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS rise as much as 5.2% to 837.4 rupees, its highest since Sept. 27

** Goldman Sachs reiterates street high PT of 1,045 rupees, maintains "buy" rating

** Says positive impact of co's menu interventions expected to drive growth in Q3

** Co says confident of delivering positive same-store sales growth in Q3, will be better than peers, during interaction with GS

** Guest count to see decent growth in Q3, aided by soft base in year-ago quarter- GS

** More than 252,000 shares change hands, 2.2x its 30-day avg

** Rivals Domino's operator Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS rated "hold", KFC franchisees Devyani International DEVY.NS and Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS rated "buy" and Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS also at "buy"

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru)

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By Praveen Paramasivam, Shivangi Acharya

CHENNAI/NEW DELHI, Nov 13 - India's city dwellers are cutting spending on everything from cookies to fast food as persistently high inflation squeezes middle class budgets, threatening the country's brisk economic growth.

Slowing urban spending over the past three to four months has not only hurt the earnings of largest consumer goods firms, it has raised questions about the structural nature of India's long-term economic success.

Since the end of the pandemic, India's economic growth has been driven in large part by urban consumption, however, that now seems to be changing.

"There is a top end – the people with money are spending like that is going out of style," Nestle India Chairman Suresh Narayanan said.

"There used to be a middle segment, which used to be the segment that most of us fast moving consumer goods (FMCG) firms used to operate in, which is the middle class of the country, that seems to be shrinking."

Nestle India, which makes Kit Kats and other well-known goods, reported its first quarterly revenue drop since the COVID-hit June quarter in 2020.

While there is no officially defined income bracket for Indian middle class households, they are broadly estimated to account for a third of India's 1.4 billion people.

They are considered a key demographic both economically and politically, with middle class frustration seen as a significant factor behind Prime Minister Narendra Modi's weaker election performance this year.

Asia's third-largest economy is expected to expand 7.2% in the financial year ending March 2025, the fastest among its major peers.

Belying those rosy projections, however, are signs of a sharp slowdown in the household sector.

Indian urban consumption hit a two-year low this month, according to an index published by Citibank that captures indicators such as airline bookings, fuel sales and wages.

"While some of the fall could be temporary, the key macro drivers remain unfavourable," Citi's chief India economist Samiran Chakraborty said.

Growth in inflation-adjusted wage costs for listed Indian firms - a proxy for earnings of urban Indians - has remained below 2% for all the three quarters of 2024, well below the 10-year average of 4.4%, data from Citi showed.

Chakraborty cites this as a key factor impacting urban consumption, along with declining savings and tighter rules for personal loans.

Headline inflation has averaged 5% over the past 12 months, but food inflation has held above 8% as weather shocks elevated prices of vegetables, cereals and other essential foods. In October, retail inflation hit a 14-month high of 6.2% while food prices jumped to 10.9%.

Anecdotal data suggests retail sales rose close to 15% year-on-year during the 2024 festive season, which runs from August to November, Nomura said in a note last week, about half last year's pace.

"During this festival season, we have not spent at all," said Rajwanti Dahiya, 60, who survives on her husband's monthly pension of 30,000 Indian rupees ($356.76).

"Savings are low, barely there."

A 'SHRINKING' MIDDLE

India's central bank expects 7.2% GDP growth for the fiscal year ending March 2025 on the back of improved rural demand and a strong services sector.

Higher government investment could also support demand, said Rahul Bajoria, head of India and ASEAN economic research at Bank of America.

"If government spending kicks in, that probably does have some multiplier effects on private consumption spending as well," said Bajoria, who expects GDP growth at 6.8% in the current financial year.

Some are less optimistic with Citi and IDFC First Bank economists expecting GDP growth in the July-September quarter to miss the central bank's projected 7%, weighed by slower urban consumption.

That pessimism has hit consumer stocks with the Nifty FMCG index .NIFTYFMCG declining 13% since Oct. 1, compared with a 7.4% drop in the benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI.

Of the FMCG index's 15 constituent firms, only one reported a pickup in sales volume growth in the September quarter.

Consumers in large cities are swapping branded items from hair oil to tea for cheaper unbranded alternatives, reflected in the first sales volume decline in 11 quarters for the foods and refreshment group at Hindustan Unilever.

"We see the growth in big city standing down, although in smaller cities and in rural the growth continues to be good," Hindustan Unilever chief executive Rohit Jawa said last month, after reporting lower than expected earnings.

Consumers are also cutting back on dining out.

Fast-food chains such as McDonald's, Burger King, Pizza Hut and KFC posted same-store sales declines, earnings showed.

While people are still coming, they are choosing cheaper meals, Rajeev Varman, CEO at Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS said after posting a 3% drop in quarterly same-store sales.

"We prefer budget-friendly stores that give good deals and discounts to manage our monthly expenditure," said 37-year old Avinash Crasto, a Mumbai marketing and sales executive who has a family of four and identifies as middle class.

($1 = 84.0640 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai and Shivangi Acharya in New Delhi; Editing by Sam Holmes)

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** Shares of Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS close down 2.8% at 802.40 rupees

** McDonald's MCD.N India operator's Q2 profit misses estimates on prolonged weak consumer demand

** Rev also misses estimates

** Stock was up 2.6% before reporting results

** Among quick service restaurant operators, only WEST and Domino's India franchisee Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS rated "hold" on avg - LSEG

** WEST swings to YTD loss of 1.5% vs JUBI's 6.5% rise

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; Mobile: +91 9591011727;))

** Shares of Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS rise as much as 9.2% to 957 rupees, highest since Oct. 6

** Goldman Sachs upgraded stock to 'buy' with a street high PT of 1,075 rupees, as per a Moneycontrol report

** Goldman Sachs expects recovery potential from new product launches like the McCrispy platform, report adds

** More than 3.8 mln shares change hands, 30x its 30-day avg

** Twenty analysts covering the stock on avg have a 'hold' rating; median PT is 870.5 rupees - LSEG data

** Stock up ~14% so far this month vs a ~7% rise in Domino's restaurant operator Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS and a 3% rise in Burger King India franchisee Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru)

(([email protected] ; ( +91 8078332441))

** Bernstein starts coverage of supermarkets operator Dmart AVEU.NS, fashion retailer Trent TREN.NS, Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS, Devyani International DEVY.NS with "Outperform"

** Says Dmart has "clear value positioning"; Trent benefiting from private label portfolio

** Dominos India franchisee Jubilant and KFC India operator Devyani to see boost from revival in fast food demand, menu innovation, expansion

** Consumers beyond the top 10% of income pyramid and outside the top 40 cities to boost retail, restaurant sectors: Bernstein

** Brokerage however rates fashion retailer Aditya Birla Fashion & Retail ADIA.NS and McDonald's operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS "Underperform"

** Rigid cost structure to weigh on WEST profitability; debt overhang and weak growth in legacy brands to hurt ADIA - brokerage

** Starts Pizza Hut operator Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS with "Marketperform", citing high valuations

** FMCG index .NIFTYFMCG is up 10.14% in 2024, underperforming the 15.3% rise in Nifty 50 .NSEI

** TREN up 6%, DEVY up 1.2% while AVEU is trading 0.2% lower; ADIA, JUBI, WEST, SAPI down 0.3%-1.6% - Exchange data

(Reporting by Bharath Rajeswaran in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; +91 9769003463;))

** Shares of Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS up 8.3% to 648.6 rupees, their highest since Feb. 2022

** The Domino's India franchisee reported near two-fold jump in Q1 profit on Friday

** Stock eyes busiest trading session since November 2022, volumes 6x the 30-day avg

** Analysts' avg rating on stock is "Hold", in line with rating on peer Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS while Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS are rated "Buy", per LSEG data

** Median PT on JUBI is 567 rupees - a 5.3% discount on last close

** Stock up 15% YTD vs 13% gains in SAPI, 4% fall in RESR and ~3% loss in WEST

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

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BENGALURU, July 25 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, the operator of McDonald's MCD.N restaurants in west and south India, reported an 89% plunge in first-quarter profit on Thursday, hurt by frail demand as budget-conscious customers cut back on eating out.

Consolidated profit after tax fell to 32.5 million rupees ($388,412.17) for the three months ended June 30 from 288.3 million rupees a year ago.

($1 = 83.6740 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

(([email protected]; +918447554364;))

BENGALURU, May 14 (Reuters) - KFC India operator Devyani International DEVY.NS reported on Tuesday an 89% slump in fourth-quarter profit before a one-time expense, as inflation-weary consumers cut back on dining out and ordering in despite discounted prices amid surging costs.

Its consolidated profit before exceptional items and tax fell to 43.9 million rupees ($525,836.7) for the quarter ended March 31, compared with a profit of 412.3 million rupees an year ago.

During the quarter, the company - which operates KFC and Pizza Hut chains - accrued an exceptional item worth 423.7 million rupees, after its unit acquired 283 KFC restaurants in Thailand, the company said.

India's quick-service restaurant's have struggled to lure customers in the face of sticky inflation.

Promotional offers and value-based meals helped Devyani's revenue from operations rise nearly 39% to 10.47 billion rupees during the quarter, beating analysts average estimate of 8.79 billion rupees, as per LSEG data.

However, this led to a near 46% surge in its total expenses.

Shares of the company, which were up 0.3% ahead of results, fell 3.3% after the results. The stock fell 22% in the March quarter.

Last week, Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, which also operates Pizza Hut and KFC chains but has fewer stores than Devyani, posted its biggest profit drop since listing on slow demand and piling costs, whereas McDonald's India franchisee Westlife's WEST.NS profit was nearly wiped out on frail demand.

($1 = 83.4860 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich)

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Adds details

BENGALURU, May 10 (Reuters) - Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, which operates the Pizza Hut and KFC chains of restaurants, posted its biggest profit fall since listing and missed estimates on Friday, as inflation-weary customers continued to cut back on dining out and ordering in.

The Yum Brands YUM.N franchisee's consolidated net profit fell 98% to 23.9 million Indian rupees ($286,271.4) for the quarter ended March 31, marking its fourth straight quarterly profit fall.

Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 44.5 million rupees, according to LSEG data.

Shares of the company, which went public in November 2021, fell as much as 3.3% after the results.

India's quick-service restaurants struggled throughout the fiscal year to lure in customers, who cut back spending due to sticky inflation. The country's food inflation, which accounts for nearly half of the overall consumer price basket, has remained high so far this year.

Sapphire Foods's restaurants launched new items at lower prices, as well as valued-added meals such as Pizza Hut's launch of a cheesy pizza-sandwich meal called Melts priced at 259 rupees and above, but customers could not be swayed.

Expenses rose 15% as raw material prices climbed 9.4%. Revenue climbed 12.7% to 6.2 billion rupees.

Rival McDonald's India franchisee Westlife WEST.NS also posted a 96% slide in fourth-quarter profit on frail demand.

Devyani International DEVY.NS, which also operates KFC outlets in the country, and Domino's India-franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS are yet to report results.

($1 = 83.4872 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

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Adds details, analyst comment from fourth paragraph

By Ashna Teresa Britto

BENGALURU, May 8 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, the operator of McDonald's restaurants in west and south India, reported a 96% slide in fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday as inflation-weary consumers cut back spending on fast food even as franchisees tried to lure them with discounted prices.

Shares of the company fell as much as 7.7% after the results before closing down 1.7%.

India's quick-service restaurants have struggled to attract customers in the face of sticky inflation and increasing competition from local players.

Westlife said consolidated profit after tax fell to 7.6 million rupees ($91,012.8) for the January-March quarter from 200.9 million rupees a year earlier.

This is the company's lowest profit since the July-September quarter of 2021 when it posted a loss.

Westlife's total expenses rose nearly 6%, compared with a 1.6% growth in revenue during the quarter.

"Margin pressure persists, with category competition growing," Elara analyst Karan Taurani said, adding that growth will remain weak due to a volatile demand environment.

However, the quantum of decline is expected to come down, Taurani said.

Affordable value packs have also failed to draw customers' attention as the pace of India's food inflation has remained high so far this year.

Westlife's same-store sales, which measure the growth in revenue from stores that have been in operation for at least a year, declined to 5% during the quarter.

Rivals KFC-operator Devyani International DEVY.NS, Pizza Hut-operator Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS and Domino's India-franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS are yet to report results.

The company came under scrutiny in November last year after Maharashtra state suspended the licence of a McDonald's outlet in the east of Mumbai for allegedly using cheese alternatives and misleading consumers.

However, the country's top food standards authority had verified the company's claims of using real cheese in its products.

U.S.-based McDonald's MCD.N missed quarterly profit estimates as customers cut back on spending and international sales dampened.

($1 = 83.5047 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Sohini Goswami)

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By Navamya Ganesh Acharya and Praveen Paramasivam

BENGALURU/CHENNAI, April 24 (Reuters) - Top fast-food franchisees in India are likely to report a slump in quarterly earnings as cash-strapped consumers continued to cut back on dining out and ordering in, analysts said, spurning the hundreds of new restaurants that operators opened in 2023.

Pizza franchisees such as Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS, Devyani International DEVY.NS and Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS struggled throughout 2023 due to heightened competition, with burger chains also joining the struggle later in the year due to inflation.

Even new affordable menu items, such as Burger King's 99-rupee combination of burger, beverage, and fries, introduced last year, failed to lure customers as India's monthly inflation rate remained above the target rate so far this year.

"Earlier you might be visiting (fast-food chains) three or four times monthly. Now everyone is restricting to once or twice," said Kranthi Bathini, equity strategist at WealthMills Securities.

Analysts polled by LSEG estimate net income slumping between 54% and 97% in the March quarter for Devyani and Sapphire, which run the Pizza Hut chain of restaurants, and McDonald's operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS.

They expect a net loss at Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS to widen sequentially, also marking at least a 12th consecutive quarterly loss.

Same-store sales are also likely to fall across the board, analysts say, with the decline expected to be more pronounced at Pizza Hut stores at more than 10%.

However, this has not deterred franchisees - including Sapphire and Devyani, which also run KFC stores, - from opening new restaurants nationwide, from Kalimpong hill town in West Bengal to Shoolagiri village in Tamil Nadu.

While restaurant operators and analysts expect the aggressive store opening plans to drive long-term growth, it has not immediately translated to earnings growth, also squeezed by stiff competition from local rivals.

Local pizzerias such as La Pino'z are mounting pressure on international counterparts, while Restaurant Brands and Westlife face competition from regional players such as Jumboking and Biggies Burger.

Westlife kicks off restaurant earnings on May 8 in India, while others are expected to report in the following days.

Like consumer goods analysts, restaurant experts also expect a rebound in demand in the second half of the financial year - roughly from October onwards - on rising expectations of the cost of living easing.

(Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru and Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Janane Venkatraman )

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** Shares of Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, McDonald's MCD.N India operator, up 0.4%; rose as much as 2.5% to session high of 829.90 rupees

** Investec Equities says demand stabilized in Q4 - expects same store sales growth (SSSG) to improve sequentially in quarter

** Gross margins to expand by 22bps Q/Q, aided by benign commodity costs - Investec

** Co's SSSG declined to 9% from 20% Y/Y in Q3, EBITDA margins fell to 16% from 18%

** Investec keeps "buy", PT of 923 rupees

** Stock set for fourth consecutive session of gains; eyes third straight week of gains

** WEST down 0.74% YTD; peers Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS and Devyani International DEVY.NS have fallen 18.8% and 19.2%, respectively, while Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS is up 7.7%

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto and Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru)

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** Demand environment, barring chocolates, remains weak, but could pick up post harvesting season in April with likely good winter-sown crop - Nirmal Bang

** Brokerage remains positive on Britannia BRIT.NS, Tata Consumer Products TACN.NS and Gillette India GILE.NS among staples

** Among discretionary, it remains positive on United Breweries UBBW.NS and Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS

** Adds if there is no dry spell or further unseasonal rain in next three weeks, price stability is likely as quality and quantity of wheat and barley expected to be good; bodes well for BRIT and UBBW

** After recent heavy investments by BRIT, next few years could see higher topline growth once near-term inflation impact on demand dissipates - Nirmal Bang

** Expects ~13%/15.5% revenue/PAT CAGR for BRIT over FY24-FY26; rates co 'buy' with target price of 5,910 rupees

** Adds positive on TACN over medium-to-long term over improvement in margins, gradual recovery in volume growth in foods and beverages businesses

(Reporting by Rama Venkat in Bengaluru)

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Adds quotes from company and CEO from paragraph 5

MUMBAI/CHENNAI, March 5 (Reuters) - An executive at McDonald's MCD.N biggest Indian franchisee Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS said on Tuesday the country's top food standards authority had verified its claims of using real cheese in its products after a crackdown by Maharashtra state.

The Western state of Maharashtra in November suspended the licence of a McDonald's outlet in the east of Mumbai for allegedly using cheese alternatives made of vegetable oil instead of real cheese, and misleading consumers.

The state revoked the suspension after an appeal by Westlife, which dropped the word "cheese" from some of its products including burgers and nuggets in December.

Following a decision by the Food Safety and Standards Authority of India (FSSAI), Westlife can use the word cheese in product names where it is one of the key ingredients, Managing Director Saurabh Kalra said at a press conference on Tuesday.

The FSSAI and Maharashtra Food and Drug Administration did not immediately respond to requests for comment.

"The verification confirms the brand’s assertion that it uses 100% real cheese and that it does not use any cheese analogues or substitutes in any of its products," Westlife said in a statement.

Westlife, which operates McDonald's outlets in western and southern India, added that a nationally accredited independent lab had also confirmed it used real cheese in its products.

Kalra said the FSSAI's decision was binding on all local authorities, including Maharashtra's, adding that Westlife was working with the state agency to close the issue.

Shares in Westlife reversed an early fall of 1% to stand 9.4% higher after the press conference. They sank 6.7% on Feb. 27 when Reuters reported Maharashtra would inspect all its McDonald's outlets in the state.

Kalra described the incident as a "bump" in Westlife's long-term plans.

(Reporting by Dhwani Pandya and Praveen Paramasivam; Editing by Jacqueline Wong and Kim Coghill, Kirsten Donovan)

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Adds stock reaction; paragraphs 8, 14

By Dhwani Pandya and Praveen Paramasivam

MUMBAI, Feb 27 (Reuters) - India's western state of Maharashtra will inspect outlets of global fast-food brands to check if they use cheese alternatives in products wrongly promoted as containing real cheese, widening scrutiny beyond a crackdown on McDonald's, a top official said.

The checks threaten to cause a headache for global brands after recent inflationary pressure hit consumption of burgers and pizzas that are pricey for many Indian consumers, prompting firms to launch of discounted offerings.

McDonald's MCD.N biggest India franchisee, Westlife Foodworld, WEST.NS has been defending its use of "real cheese" after media reported that state authorities last year found some products made use of so-called cheese analogues of vegetable oil, rather than real cheese.

The McDonald's franchisee disagreed with the findings, but in December it dropped the word "cheese" from the names of many burgers and nuggets it sells statewide, letters seen by Reuters show.

It renamed a "corn and cheese burger" as an "American vegetarian burger", for example.

Inspectors of the state's Food and Drug Administration will now visit all McDonald's outlets, as well as those of other major brands, to check for similar violations of display and labelling rules, its chief, Abhimanyu Kale, told Reuters.

"We are planning to check all outlets of McDonald's," he said. "We will also take action on other well-known and frequently visited global fast-food chain outlets," he added, but declined to identify the brands being targeted.

Shares of Westlife plunged as much as 6.7% after the Reuters report.

Another senior state government official, who sought anonymity, said inspectors would visit Indian franchisee outlets of brands such as Domino's DPZ.N, Pizza Hut, Burger King and KFC.

Indian state authorities have the power to suspend the licences of restaurants found to have infringed food and safety regulations in a way that misleads consumers.

Westlife, which runs McDonald's in west and south India, will welcome any inspections and maintains the "highest standards", its managing director, Saurabh Kalra, said.

Domino's franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS, Burger King operator Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS and Devyani International DEVY.NS, which operates Yum Brands' YUM.N Pizza Hut and KFC in India, did not respond to Reuters queries.

Another Pizza Hut operator, India's Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS, declined comment.

Devyani shares slipped on Tuesday's news to trade down 4%.

India's western state of Maharashtra is its second most populous. Home to the financial capital Mumbai, which has about 100 McDonald's outlets, and many other urban cities, it is a key market for global fast-food brands.

In the McDonald's case, state food inspectors suspended the licence of one outlet east of Mumbai in November for allegedly using analogues in products promoted as containing cheese.

The suspension was later revoked on appeal by Westlife, the franchisee.

The company reassured many consumers online who voiced concerns about its cheese offerings, saying on social network X that it uses "globally approved gold-standard suppliers".

"Our cheese is made from real milk only and we do not use any substitutes or cheese analogues," it said on Monday.

(Editing by Aditya Kalra and Clarence Fernandez)

(([email protected]; @adityakalra;))

BENGALURU/CHENNAI, Jan 31 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, the operator of McDonald's chain of restaurants in west and south India, missed quarterly profit estimates on Wednesday, hurt by sluggish demand.

Consolidated profit after tax fell nearly 53% to 172.4 million rupees ($2.08 million) in the three months ended Dec.31, according to an exchange filing.

Analysts, on average, had expected profit to fall to 331.1 million rupees, according to data from LSEG.

($1 = 83.0180 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman )

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BENGALURU, Jan 29 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, which operates Burger King and Popeyes chains in India and Indonesia, reported a narrower third-quarter loss on Monday, boosted by strong sales in the festive season.

The company's consolidated net loss narrowed to 361.8 million rupees ($4.4 million) in the three months ended Dec. 31, from 504.2 million rupees a year earlier.

Nonetheless, this is the company's seventeenth consecutive quarterly loss, hurt this time around by a nearly 10% jump in total expenses.

The company, which runs quick service chains owned by Restaurant Brands International QSR.TO, said prices of ingredients including chicken, cheese, tomatoes and onions rose 12.6%.

However, revenue increased about 15% during the quarter, helped by consumers stepping out during the Diwali festival in India and the Christmas holiday period more broadly.

Sales also got a boost in India, which accounts for about 74% of total sales, as some vegetarian-centric religious periods fell in September this year, instead of October.

During the October-December quarter, Restaurant Brands Asia's same-store sales growth at Indian Burger King restaurants slowed to 2.6% from 28% in the year-ago quarter.

Rival fast food chain operators such as KFC-operator Devyani International DEVY.NS, Pizza Hut-operator Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS, McDonald's-operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS and Domino's India-franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS are yet to report results.

Restaurant Brands Asia's shares closed down at 2.9% ahead of results on Monday.

($1 = 83.1300 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Ashna Teresa Britto in Bengaluru; Editing by Sherry Jacob-Phillips and Savio D'Souza)

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** Kotak Institutional Equities picks Sapphire Foods SAPI.NS as its preferred stock in quick service restaurants (QSR) space

** SAPI, which rose 6.3% in 2023, marginally down at 1,446 rupees; has avg "buy" rating- LSEG data

** SAPI, a franchise of Yum Brands YUM.N, offers good growth at reasonable valuations with weaker sales trend in industry - Kotak

** Brokerage says demand weakness that hit QSR industry in November 2022 has continued due to broader slowdown in discretionary consumption

** Adds same-store sales growth remained subdued in Q3 despite a weak base, late festive season and Cricket World Cup

** Combination of aggressive store additions and demand

weakness has weighed on profitability of QSR cos in FY24- Kotak

** Cuts FY2024-26 EBITDA estimates across cos like Jubilant Industries JUBL.NS, Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, Sapphire, Devyani International DEVY.NS, Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS by 5-11%

(Reporting by Sethuraman NR in Bengaluru)

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** Shares of India-based Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS up 2.5% at 116.30 rupees, trimming earlier gains of 5%

** Over 1.5 mln shares of Burger King India franchisee traded in one block deal at 112.45 rupees apiece - LSEG data

** Over 8.2 mln shares traded, highest since mid-September and 3.7x the 30-day avg

** The mean rating of 10 analysts tracking RESR equivalent to "buy"; median PT is 126 rupees - LSEG data

** Among rivals, Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, Devyani International DEVY.NS and Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS are rated close to equivalent of "buy", while Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS is rated "hold" - LSEG

** In Dec-qtr, RESR, SAPI, DEVY, WEST fell 10.3%, 2.2%, 9.6%, 12.6%, respectively, while JUBI rose 6%

(Reporting by Ashish Chandra in Bengaluru)

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Dec 13 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld Ltd WEST.NS:

• UNIT'S RESTAURANT AT AHMEDABAD RECEIVED PENALTY NOTICE FROM AHMEDABAD MUNICIPAL CORPORATION

• NO SIGNIFICANT IMPACT AT PRESENT

Source text for Eikon: ID:nBSE72yrQ8

Further company coverage: WEST.NS

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BENGALURU, Nov 8 (Reuters) - Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, the franchisee of Burger King India, reported a narrower quarterly loss on Wednesday as it added more outlets in the country and expanded its menu.

Consolidated net loss narrowed to 460.3 million rupees ($5.5 million) in the three months to Sept. 30, from a loss of 499.5 million rupees a year earlier.

Burger King India expanded its menu during the quarter to include more chicken items and also offered promotions on certain meals, helping increase footfall at its restaurants and accrue higher average bill values, analysts said.

Restaurant Brands, which added 10 Burger King outlets during the period, also benefitted from more people visiting malls, where it has a bigger presence than other fast food chains, they added.

Its revenue from operations rose 16% to 6.25 billion rupees.

Even so, same-store sales growth, a barometer of customer retention, at Indian Burger King restaurants slowed to 3.5% from 27% a year earlier.

The company's expenses rose 15%, led by an over 20% spike in the cost of ingredients.

Several fast food chains, including Burger King, removed ingredients such as tomatoes and cheese from their menus to cut back spending during the quarter.

Rival fast food chain operators such as KFC operator Devyani International DEVY.NS, Pizza Hut operator Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, McDonald's operator Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, and Domino's India franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks JUBI.NS all reported a decline in quarterly profit.

Shares of Restaurant Brands fell as much as 2.1% after the results, before reversing course to rise as much as 3.3%.

They have risen 6.5% so far this year. Devyani and Westlife have each risen 2% and 3% this year, while Sapphire and Jubilant have fallen 4% and 0.5%, respectively.

($1 = 83.2560 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Varun Vyas in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

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Nov 7 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld Ltd WEST.NS:

• UNIT RECEIVED LICENSE SUSPENSION NOTICE FROM ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER, FDA

• UNIT RECEIVED LICENSE SUSPENSION FOR MCDONALD'S RESTAURANT, AHMEDNAGAR

• COMMISSIONER OF FOOD SAFETY GRANTED STAY OF SUSPENSION, RESTAURANT RESUMED OPERATIONS

Source text for Eikon: ID:nNSE2ZD3H0

Further company coverage: WEST.NS

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By Praveen Paramasivam

CHENNAI, Oct 27 (Reuters) - Shares in India's Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS fell as much as 7.7% on Friday, a day after the McDonald's operator reported a surprise drop in quarterly profit and indicated high inflation was squeezing consumer spending in the current festive quarter.

Prices of essentials in India have shot up in recent months, prompting companies like Coca-Cola KO.N to roll out smaller packs and restaurants to launch cheaper pizzas and burgers.

"All around you are seeing pressure on macro spending," Westlife Executive Director Akshay Jatia said, adding the informal eat out category as well as Western fast food are under pressure in terms of growth.

"Eating out frequency remains low," he said.

This slowdown is not restricted to India. Globally, fast-food chains, including McDonald's MCD.N and KFC-parent Yum Brands YUM.N, are contending with inflation-stung consumers preferring to dine at home.

To counter this, Westlife in June launched discounted meals at 179 rupees ($2.15).

However, this only led to a 1% growth in same-store sales, slowing from a 7% rise in the first quarter and a 40% jump last year.

Westlife's shares are tracking their worst day in two years and seven months, trimming gains to around 5% so far this year.

Until the second quarter, the company had shrugged off the fast-food slowdown on higher demand for fried chicken, burgers and coffee, while pizza chains have been under more pronounced pressure for several quarters.

Earlier this week, Domino's Pizza franchisee Jubilant FoodWorks reported a decline in like-for-like sales - a key same-store sales metric - for the third straight quarter.

"Although Westlife has been relatively resilient in the past few quarters, the slowdown has started showing its impact finally," Prabhudas Lilladher analyst Amnish Aggarwal said after the company's second-quarter results.

Consumer spending typically picks up in the October-December quarter, dubbed the festive quarter, as it includes Christmas and the Hindu festival of Deepavali, when people engage in more discretionary spending.

However, another Westlife executive said the factors that pressured the franchisee's sales would not "dramatically" change in the third quarter.

($1 = 83.2380 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

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CHENNAI, Oct 26 (Reuters) - Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, which operates McDonald's restaurants in west and south India, reported quarterly earnings that missed analysts' estimates on Thursday, as increased costs overshadowed higher sales of its burgers and fried chicken.

The franchisee said consolidated net profit after tax fell to 223.7 million Indian rupees ($2.7 million) in the July-September quarter, from 315.4 million rupees a year ago.

Analysts were expecting a profit of 319.6 million rupees, according to LSEG data.

($1 = 83.1590 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

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Refiles to add dropped word 'the' in paragraph 1

By Manoj Kumar and Praveen Paramasivam

NEW DELHI/CHENNAI, Aug 16 (Reuters) - Burger King has scrapped tomatoes from its wraps and burgers in many Indian outlets after prices more than quadrupled, the latest symptom of surging food inflation that is hitting consumers hard across the world's most populous nation.

"Even tomatoes need a vacation ... we are unable to add tomatoes to our food," read notices pasted at two Burger King India outlets. The chain has cited quality issues in explaining the shortfall.

The burger chain, one of India's biggest with nearly 400 outlets, joins many McDonald's and Subway stores that have removed tomatoes from menus as India's food inflation this week hit its highest since January 2020.

The U.S. sandwich chain even cancelled the free cheese slices it offered for years.

Rival Domino's DPZ.N, meanwhile, has tried bringing down prices to appeal to struggling consumers with a $0.60 pizza - its cheapest in the world.

The tomato supply crisis has coincided with a surge in prices by as much as 450% to record highs as monsoon rains disrupted crop and supply chains - although they have since eased.

"Why are there no tomatoes in my burgers?" reads a question on the support page of Burger King India's web site. The answer states its Indian franchisee follows "very high standards of quality" and tomatoes will be back soon.

"We request your patience and understanding," it says.

Restaurant Brands Asia RESR.NS, which operates Burger King in India, did not respond to requests for comment.

The pain is spreading with July retail inflation data released this week showing prices of vegetables rose 37% over a year. The cost of staples from onions and peas to garlic and ginger have all risen.

"If the prices remain high, then eventually restaurants will have to take price increases," said Amnish Aggarwal, head of research at India's Prabhudas Lilladher. "There is no other alternative."

As well as placing pressure on the margins of foreign chains operating in India's nearly $5 billion market for fast-food restaurants, the price shocks pose a challenge for Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government ahead of a national election next year.

To manage the supply crisis, India has started tomato imports from Nepal, and has organised vans to distribute the staple at cheaper rates across the nation, with social media posts showing huge queues.

(Reporting by Manoj Kumar in New Delhi and Praveen Paramasivam in Chennai; Editing by Aditya Kalra and Conor Humphries)

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By Navamya Ganesh Acharya

BENGALURU, Aug 2 (Reuters) - Sapphire Foods India SAPI.NS, the domestic operator of KFC and Pizza Hut restaurants, reported lower-than-expected first-quarter profit on Wednesday, as mounting costs outpaced a growth in revenue.

The company's net profit stood at 249.4 million rupees ($3.02 million) in the quarter ended June 30, compared to 382.7 million rupees a year earlier, the U.S.-based Yum Brands' franchisee said in an exchange filing.

Analysts, on average, expected the company to report a profit of 273.8 million rupees, according to Refinitiv IBES data.

Expenses climbed 21.6%, with cost of materials consumed jumping 17.4% to 2.06 billion rupees and employee costs increasing 24.3%.

India is reeling under rising prices of essentials as monsoon rains have disrupted supplies, with companies including Domino's flagship inflation-buster 49-rupee pizza being "re-engineered" by cutting price - and tomatoes - from its earlier cheapest offering of 59 rupees.

However, raw material prices are bottoming out and have started reflecting in margin improvement, said Sneha Poddar, associate vice president at Motilal Oswal Financial Services, adding she sees strong long-term opportunities in quick service restaurants.

For the quarter, same-store sales at Sapphire Foods' Pizza Hut restaurants fell 9%, while the company's KFC business reported a flat same-store sales growth.

Rival Domino's Pizza DPZ.N, run by Jubilant Foodworks JUBI.NS, reported a 74% fall in quarterly profit as it grappled with higher costs, while Westlife Foodworld WEST.NS, which runs McDonald's MCD.N stores in West and South India, reported a smaller-than-expected rise in profit.

Shares in Sapphire, which operates over 700 restaurants across India, Sri Lanka and Maldives, fell as much as 3.5% after the results.

($1 = 82.5690 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Navamya Ganesh Acharya in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

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