Force Motors, the Abhay Firodia promoted light commercial vehicles maker, reported its December 2009 quarter results with a smart growth in sales and maintained profitability seen in the previous quarter.
Highlights
- Sales rose by 60% to Rs 217 crore. Operating income rose by 25% to Rs 15.4 crore. The company has been attempting to revive its LCV sales through the introduction of four-wheeler cargo/passenger carriers as demand for its Minidor 3-wheelers is declining. While sales have risen sharply, part of this could be due to the base effect, as the global financial crisis led to auto sales slumping in the December 2008 quarter. Force’s sales during the September 2009 quarter was Rs 225 crore, indicating a sequential slip in sales.
- Its operating profit margin during the December quarter was 8.1% compared to a loss at the operating level a year ago. Margins were the same level as in September.
- The company’s interest costs have fallen substantially, indicating that the money it received after its sale of investments has been used to repay loans. Its interest outgo during the December quarter was Rs 4.2 crore compared to Rs 10.4 crore in the year ago period.
- Profit before tax and exceptional items was Rs 4.4 crore compared to a loss of Rs 25.3 crore. Exceptioinal income of Rs 295 crore (profit on sale of investments) in the December 2008 quarter saw its loss turn into a net profit of Rs 201 crore. In the December 2009 quarter, it had a deferred tax credit of Rs 2.6 crore, leading to a net profit of Rs 7 crore.
- The company’s share price was up by 2.2% to Rs 323 at the time of posting.
Get the results from the BSE here.