On the back of its highest quarterly sales, the country?s largest two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp (formerly Hero Honda) posted its best results ever in the quarter ending September 30 with net profits jumping 19.4%, surpassing market expectations by a long shot. In the July-September quarter the company?s net profit stood at R603.6 crore against R505.6 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal. In this three-month period the company?s total two-wheeler sales increased almost one-fifth to 15.4 lakh compared to 12.8 lakh vehicles in the same period last year.
Hero MotoCorp?s net sales during the quarter increased 28% to R5,784.3 crore against R4,511.2 crore in the same period last year. The company?s operating income also increased 28% to R5,829 crore with an Ebitda margin of 15.7%. In the same quarter previous fiscal the company’s net operating income stood at R4,551 crore. During the quarter the company?s raw material costs increased nearly 26% to R4,264 crore compared to R3,385.7 crore in the same quarter last fiscal. ?The results have surpassed our expectations by a long margin,? a market analyst based in Mumbai said. He had expected the company to post a net profit growth of 8-10%.
During the quarter the company?s depreciation cost increased almost four-fold to R280 crore from R60.7 crore while its total expenses jumped nearly 30% to R5,190 crore from R4,005 crore during the same period. ?Our bottom line results reflect our record top line performance over the past six months. This performance has come despite rising food inflation and fuel costs. These two areas remain a concern for the industry, as it might adversely impact consumer spending in the coming months,? MD & CEO of Hero MotoCorp Pawan Munjal said. He added that the company would keep growing with its sales expected to peak by the end of this month.