Healthcare provider Fortis Healthcare Ltd on Friday (November 10) reported a 15.7% year-on-year (YoY) decline in net profit at ₹183.9 crore for the second quarter that ended September 30, 2023.

In the corresponding quarter last year, Fortis Healthcare posted a net profit of ₹218.2 crore, the company said in a regulatory filing. The company's revenue from operations increased 10% to ₹1,770 crore as against ₹1,607 crore in the corresponding period of the preceding fiscal.

At the operating level, EBITDA increased 8.8% to ₹329.9 crore in the second quarter of this fiscal over ₹303.2 crore in the corresponding period in the previous fiscal.

EBITDA margin stood at 18.6% in the reporting quarter as compared to 18.9% in the corresponding period in the previous fiscal. EBITDA is earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization.

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In Q2 FY24, the hospital business revenues demonstrated a significant 12% increase, reaching ₹1,452.6 crore compared to ₹1,297 crore in Q2 FY23. This growth is commendable, especially with a 7.3% increase compared to the previous quarter.

The positive revenue trend is attributed to several factors, including a healthy improvement in Average Revenue Per Occupied Bed (ARPOB), an increase in the number of occupied beds, and an improved case mix.

Occupancy, a crucial metric in the healthcare industry, stood at 68.7% in Q2 FY24, only marginally lower than the 69.6% recorded in Q2 FY23. ARPOB witnessed a robust growth of 11.8%, reaching ₹2.21 crore in Q2 FY24 from ₹1.97 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal year.

The diagnostics business gross revenues reached ₹360.3 crore, a slight increase from ₹351.2 crore in Q2 FY23.

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Fortis Healthcare's net debt to EBITDA ratio, stands at 0.29, compared to 0.44 in the previous year. The net debt as of September 30, 2023, was ₹393 crore, reflecting a modest increase from ₹340 crore as of March 31, 2023.

Dr Ashutosh Raghuvanshi, MD and CEO of Fortis Healthcare stated, "Our consolidated revenues in Q2 FY24 have grown 10.1% to ₹1,770 crore with operating EBITDA margins at 18.6%.

Our hospital business has seen a significant improvement versus the trailing quarter with margins expanding 320 bps and is also better than Q2 of the previous year."

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The results came after the close of the market hours. Shares of Fortis Healthcare Ltd ended at ₹359.15, up by ₹17.10, or 5.00 percent on the BSE.