The Hindu Business Line : M&M Q1 net dips 6.4%

Mr Keshub Mahindra, Chairman, Mahindra & Mahindra Ltd (left), and Mr Anand Mahindra, Vice-Chairman and Managing Director, at the company’s AGM in Mumbai on Monday.

Our Bureau

Mumbai, July 30 Mahindra & Mahindra (M&M) has reported a 6.4 per cent dip in its first quarter net profit at Rs 191 crore, against Rs 204 crore in the corresponding year-ago period.

However, excluding exceptional items, which added a net income of Rs 37.7 crore (octroi refund and dividend from subsidiary) to the profits of the year-ago quarter, the net profit for the first quarter would have been higher by 14.8 per cent, the company said.

Net profit was also impacted by the strengthening rupee and the consequent lower export realisation, said a statement from the company. Increased input costs too affected profitability.

Gross total income for the current quarter at Rs 2,972.8 crore registered a growth of 16.6 per cent, over Rs 2,548.6 crore. Expenditure rose by 19 per cent to Rs 2,336 crore, from Rs 1,966 crore.

EBITDA was slightly lower at Rs 308.7 crore (Rs 315.6 crore).

Sales folio

The company sold 31,171 vehicles in the current quarter against 25,216 units in the same period the previous year. It increased its market share in the utility vehicle segment to 50 per cent from 43.7 per cent a year ago.

Sales of the new Scorpio grew by 16 per cent while the Bolero brand grew 35 per cent in volumes. The company exported 2,436 units of the flagship model and its variants, registering a growth of 83 per cent over the previous period last year.

While the utility vehicle segment continued to grow for the company, it posted a decline in sales in the large three-wheeler segment by 37 per cent with 2,325 units sold in the quarter under consideration.

In the small three-wheeler cargo segment, the company’s sales were 74 per cent higher, at 5,011 units, with its market share at 18 per cent.

M&M’s tractor division posted sales of 25,250 units during the quarter, 1 per cent higher from a year ago (25,042 units). Exports were lower at 2,067 units, against 2,316 units.

Outlook

The company said its outlook for the year is positive. However, high interest rates, the strengthening rupee and the slowing of credit growth are some of the challenging factors that the company is facing right now, it said.

The company’s shares fell 3 per cent on the BSE to close at Rs 752.55 on Monday.