Hospital-chain Fortis Healthcare has reported a 40 per cent rise in net profit to ₹87 crore for the quarter ending March 31, 2022, as against the ₹62 crore it was reporting in the year ago period. Consolidated revenue during the period was up 10 per cent year-over-year (y-o-y) to ₹1,378 crore.

The earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation stood at ₹227 crore, up 11.6 per cent y-o-y; while EBITDA margins for the quarter under review stood at 16.5 per cent. The hospital chain in a statement said, Q4 FY22 witnessed the impact of the Covid pandemic in the first half of the quarter with occupancies witnessing a downturn.

“However, given the lesser severity of covid and low hospitalisations the business saw recovery towards the end of February and operations returning to normal in the month of March. While January saw an occupancy of 54 per cent, March witnessed a rebound with occupancy at 63 per cent,” it said.

Diagnostics business

The diagnostics business in Q4 was aided by higher Covid volumes albeit at lower price points. The business recorded a lower non-Covid revenue contribution at 69 per cent to overall diagnostics revenues in January. This eased out in February leading to recovery in the non-Covid business revenues in March; contributing 93 per cent to overall diagnostic revenues for the month.

For FY22, both the hospitals and the diagnostics business saw an impact in Q1 and Q4 of FY22 due to the covid pandemic. Despite the severity of covid in Q1, the company was able to sustain its business operations and at the same time ensure adequate availability of medical infrastructure to serve covid patients.

In Q2 and Q3, the hospital chain witnessed a sharp rebound in the non-covid business with pent-up demand for elective surgeries being visible. Q4 once again saw a third wave which was relatively shorter and less severe but saw fewer hospitalisations impacting both covid and non-covid admissions.

“The business rebounded quickly towards the latter half of Q4, although still below normal levels,” the company said in a statement. The diagnostics business performance in FY22 was also positively impacted due to the increased demand for Covid and Covid allied tests in Q1 and Q4, offsetting the non-Covid volume declines.

“However, the significant rise in covid and covid allied tests in select quarters of FY2022 are not expected to witness the same trend in the current fiscal,” it added. For FY22, Fortis reported a PAT of ₹790 crore, as against a loss of ₹56 core in the year-ago period. Consolidated revenues were up 42 per cent y-o-y to ₹5,718 crore.

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