ITC Ltd enjoyed an increase of 21 per cent in its net profit in the quarter ended December 31, 2012, thanks to an all round growth across the FMCG giant's various business segments.

Strong performance in cigarette, non-cigarette as well as agri-business segments pushed the company's net profit to Rs 2,052 crore in the three months through December, from Rs 1,701 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.

Net sales jumped 23 per cent year-on-year, from Rs 6,195 crore to Rs 7,627 crore; while profits, on a sequential basis, jumped 12 per cent from Rs 1,836 crore in the three months ended September 30, 2012.

V Srinivasan, research analyst at Angel Broking, said the company's quarterly figures were better than their expectations.

Commenting on the figures, Srinivasan said, "We estimated Rs 7200 crore and it has come in at about Rs 7600 crore. Same is the case with the net profit numbers. It has come ahead of our estimates."

Losses from the FMCG business dropped from Rs 47 crore to Rs 24 crore, while revenues from this segment jumped to Rs 5,440 crore. The cigarettes category contributed Rs 3,657 crore. The cigarette category volume grew nearly 1.5 per cent, while the margins from the segment jumped by around 400 basis points.

Stock in ITC gained 0.67 per cent to Rs 287.05 a share on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on Friday.