New Delhi, Jan. 12 -- Margins stole the limelight at Avenue Supermarts Ltd on Saturday, when the retailer announced its earnings for the December quarter.

The company that owns and operates the DMart supermarket chain saw a 47 basis points (bps) year-on-year increase in its Q3 standalone Ebitda margin to 8.4%-a multi-quarter high. This is the first year-on-year increase in Ebitda margin after it had dropped for six straight quarters.

The margin expansion can be attributed to the 50 bps rise in gross margin to 14.5% and a slower rate of growth in other operating expenses. Also, there may have been some benefit due to lower discounting after the cuts in the goods and services tax (GST) rates.

Factoring in the better margins, some analyst...