Sun TV Network Limited profit rises 3.7% despite revenue fall

Sun TV Network reported standalone profit after tax of Rs 341.87 crore for the quarter ended September 30, 2026, up 3.7% from Rs 329.79 crore a year earlier. The increase occurred as revenue from operations declined 31.4% to Rs 801.76 crore and profit before exceptional items and tax fell to Rs 437.21 crore.

Why did Sun TV Network's September-quarter profit increase?

Sun TV Network’s reported profit increased because the September 2025 quarter included a Rs 27.44 crore exceptional charge, while the September 2026 quarter recorded no exceptional item, and tax expense declined to Rs 95.34 crore from Rs 122.45 crore. Profit after tax rose by Rs 12.08 crore year on year to Rs 341.87 crore.

Profit before exceptional items and tax nevertheless fell to Rs 437.21 crore from Rs 479.68 crore in the corresponding quarter a year earlier. Profit before tax was Rs 437.21 crore in September 2026, compared with Rs 452.24 crore in September 2025 after the earlier exceptional charge. The filing says the exceptional items in the prior six-month period related to impairment of the company’s joint-venture investment and the incremental effect of implementing labour codes.

Earnings per share, calculated on shares with a face value of Rs 5 each, rose to Rs 8.68 from Rs 8.37. Total comprehensive income was Rs 341.99 crore, against Rs 329.78 crore a year earlier, including a Rs 0.12 crore remeasurement gain on defined-benefit obligations after tax.

How much did Sun TV Network's quarterly revenue decline?

Sun TV Network’s revenue from operations fell by Rs 367.23 crore, or 31.4%, from Rs 1,168.99 crore in the September 2025 quarter to Rs 801.76 crore in the September 2026 quarter. Revenue also declined by Rs 621.63 crore from Rs 1,423.39 crore in the preceding June 2026 quarter.

Total income, including other income, decreased to Rs 934.79 crore from Rs 1,300.36 crore a year earlier. Other income was Rs 133.03 crore, compared with Rs 131.37 crore in the September 2025 quarter and Rs 166.84 crore in the June 2026 quarter. The filing identifies Media and Entertainment as Sun TV Network’s only reportable segment.

The standalone results do not provide a separate advertising-revenue figure, so they do not quantify advertising’s contribution to the Rs 367.23 crore year-on-year decline in revenue from operations. They also do not disclose earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation, or EBITDA, as a separate measure; the closest stated operating-profit comparison is profit before exceptional items and tax.

Which costs changed in Sun TV Network's quarter?

Sun TV Network’s total expenses declined to Rs 497.58 crore from Rs 820.68 crore a year earlier and Rs 782.11 crore in the June 2026 quarter. The Rs 323.10 crore year-on-year reduction in expenses exceeded the Rs 367.23 crore fall in quarterly revenue only after considering other income of Rs 133.03 crore.

Depreciation and amortisation expense declined by Rs 288.38 crore year on year to Rs 110.82 crore from Rs 399.20 crore. Operational cost fell to Rs 211.86 crore from Rs 248.83 crore, while employee-benefit expense was Rs 74.47 crore compared with Rs 75.13 crore. Other expenses increased to Rs 98.13 crore from Rs 95.09 crore, but were below Rs 262.64 crore in June 2026.

The September 2026 quarter recorded no cricket-franchise fee, whereas the June 2026 quarter included Rs 123.32 crore. Over the six months ended September 30, 2026, cricket-franchise income was Rs 631.61 crore, compared with Rs 473.03 crore a year earlier, while corresponding costs increased to Rs 324.23 crore from Rs 256.46 crore.

What do Sun TV Network's six-month results and cash flows show?

Sun TV Network’s standalone profit after tax for the six months ended September 30, 2026 increased 11.1% to Rs 953.84 crore from Rs 858.45 crore a year earlier. Revenue from operations declined 8.3% to Rs 2,225.15 crore from Rs 2,425.78 crore over the same comparison.

Profit before exceptional items and tax rose to Rs 1,245.33 crore from Rs 1,171.97 crore, while total income fell to Rs 2,525.02 crore from Rs 2,737.64 crore. The latest six-month period had no exceptional item, while the comparable period contained a Rs 27.44 crore exceptional charge. Tax expense was Rs 291.49 crore, compared with Rs 286.08 crore a year earlier.

Net cash flow from operating activities was Rs 889.88 crore for the six months, down from Rs 947.23 crore in the prior-year period. Investing activities used Rs 749.05 crore, including Rs 629.09 crore for property, plant, equipment, investment properties and capital work in progress, and Rs 554.44 crore for intangible assets. Cash and cash equivalents were Rs 141.04 crore on September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 209.59 crore at March 31, 2026.

How did Sun TV Network's financial position and dividend change?

Sun TV Network’s standalone total assets increased to Rs 14,153.38 crore on September 30, 2026 from Rs 13,431.39 crore on March 31, 2026. Total equity increased to Rs 13,076.13 crore from Rs 12,319.10 crore during the same six months.

Current investments rose to Rs 6,049.62 crore from Rs 5,913.27 crore, while trade receivables decreased to Rs 1,252.94 crore from Rs 1,390.41 crore. Current liabilities declined to Rs 1,005.03 crore from Rs 1,035.55 crore, although current tax liabilities were Rs 107.31 crore at September 30, 2026, compared with nil at March 31, 2026.

The board declared an interim dividend of Rs 3.75 per share on October 30, 2026, in addition to the Rs 5 per share interim dividend declared on August 12, 2026. The two declared interim dividends total Rs 8.75 per share, while the financing cash-flow statement shows Rs 197.04 crore of interim dividends paid in the six months ended September 30, 2026.

Conclusion

Sun TV Network’s September-quarter result shows that reported profit moved differently from revenue and pre-exceptional operating profit. Revenue from operations fell 31.4% to Rs 801.76 crore and profit before exceptional items and tax decreased to Rs 437.21 crore, while the absence of the prior-year exceptional charge and lower tax expense helped profit after tax rise 3.7% to Rs 341.87 crore.

The next disclosed governance event is the five-year reappointment of Executive Chairman Kalanithi Maran and Executive Director Kavery Kalanithi, effective April 20, 2027. Before then, future results will show whether revenue from operations, which was Rs 2,225.15 crore in the first six months of financial year 2027, changes alongside the company’s cricket-franchise income and related costs.