Bajaj Auto Ltd. (BAL) reported a drop of 5 per cent in its net profit for the third quarter of 2014-15 at Rs 861 crore although its net sales and operating profit were higher by 10 per cent at Rs 5,520 crore and Rs 1,200 crore respectively. Volume growth was almost flat at 984,520 units (993,690 units).
BAL’s profit was impacted by lower other income of Rs 95.27 crore (Rs 221.84 crore). “We had invested in money market instruments but chose to invest in 3-year instruments FMPs which have different accounting treatment,’’ S. Ravi Kumar, President of Business Development & Assurance, BAL said, adding that the margins were maintained at 21.1 per cent.
The company’s export revenue at Rs 2,680 crore rose 26 per cent and contributed 49 per cent of turnover. “There is a lot of headroom for exports to grow as we are adding new markets,’’ Mr. Kumar said. “It is likely to grow at 15-20 per cent for the next few years and settle at around half of the company’s turnover.’’
BAL’s three-wheeler sales grew 32 per cent to over 139,000 units with an overall 42 per cent share in the domestic market.
In motorcycles, BAL sold over 845,000 units and launched the new Platina Electric start on January 5, 2015. “We will soon launch one more 100 cc motorcycle and also three more Pulsar models. From now to June 2015, we will be launching a new product every month.’’
The Pulsar has a domestic market share of around 45 per cent. Analysts were optimistic about the prospects. “Going ahead, BAL is banking on new launches to gain domestic market share in the 100 cc segment,’’ Arun Agarwal, auto analyst, Kotak Securities said, adding that exports are expected to continue to grow at a healthy pace.
On the Bombay Stock Exchange on Friday, Bajaj Auto closed trade with a gain of 0.09 per cent at Rs 2,420.05.
