Ashok Leyland Ltd., (ALL) reported a 17% decline in fourth-quarter standalone net profit to ₹751 crore.
“Q4 of FY22 witnessed one-off exceptional gain of ₹468 crore,” CFO Gopal Mahadevan said explaining the fall in profit. “Normalised net profit would be ₹433 crore... so, the current year net profit is higher by 73%,” he contended.
“We have done well on all fronts. Better performance is due to increase in revenue and consequent improvement in EBITDA margins. ALL recorded highest-ever revenue of ₹36,144 crore for FY23,” Mr. Mahadevan said.
He also said that ALL generated cash of ₹963 crore and ended with a net cash surplus of ₹243 crore against net debt of ₹720 crore. For FY24, the company would be incurring a capex of ₹600-750 crore for capacity augmentation.
During Q4, revenue from operations rose to ₹11,626 crore, from ₹8,744 crore, and cost of materials increased by 26% to ₹8,080 crore, the commercial vehicle manufacturer said in a regulatory filing.
The board recommended a dividend of ₹2.60 per share.
ALL’s truck market share improved to 32.7 % from 30.6%. Bus market share was up marginally at 27.1% (26.4%). Domestic light commercial vehicle (LCV) vehicle volume grew by 18% to 18,840 units, said MD & CEO Shenu Agarwal.
Despite geopolitical headwinds, on a full-year basis export volumes rose by 2% to 11,289 units, he added.
“In the LCV segment, both Dost and Bada Dost continue to perform very well. Going forward, last-mile connectivity demand propelled by e-commerce is likely to support LCV truck volumes. ALL expanded its network by opening 152 new outlets across the country,” he said.
“The CV industry is buoyant due to favourable macroeconomic factors and a healthy demand from the end-user industries,” said executive chairman Dheeraj Hinduja. “This trend is expected to continue alongside growth in core sectors such as construction & mining, agriculture, increased capital outlay for infrastructure projects and pent-up replacement demand,” he added.
To balance the volatility of its core business, the company will continue to focus on international operations, defence, power solutions and parts businesses.
With momentum gradually picking up in EVs, Switch Mobility is well poised to complement the developments at ALL across a spectrum of alternate propulsion systems, he said.
