Hindalco Q4 profit doubles to Rs 3,851 cr; revenue rises 38% YoY

Company shares closed trade on the BSE at Rs 407.75 apiece, up 2.75 per cent over the previous day's close.

Hindalco Industries, the flagship metals company of the Aditya Birla group, said on Thursday its consolidated net profit doubled year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 3,851 crore for the quarter ending March 31 (Q4)--the highest number for any quarter. Bloomberg consensus estimates had pegged Q4 net profit at Rs 2,959 crore for the quarter.

The company reported its Q4 numbers after markets closed. Shares of Hindalco closed trade on the BSE at Rs 407.75 apiece, up 2.75 per cent over the previous day's close.

Hindalco's consolidated revenue for Q4 rose nearly 38 per cent to Rs 55,764 crore versus the year-ago period, ahead of Bloomberg consensus estimates, which had pegged revenue for the quarter at Rs 53,387 crore.

While earnings before interest tax depreciation and amortisation (Ebitda) for the quarter jumped 30 per cent YoY to Rs 7,598 crore, once again beating Bloomberg consensus estimates which had pegged Ebitda at Rs 5,898 crore for the period. The company reported an all-time high quarterly Ebitda for the Aluminium India business at Rs 4,050 crore, up 123 per cent YoY. Ebitda margins for the Aluminium India business stood at 41 per cent in Q4, amongst the best in the industry, sector analysts said.

"The fundamentals of the business are in place, driven by a consistent focus on operational excellence and cost optimization. Our strategy to build a more sustainable business model that is isolated from the metal cycles is working well for us. In line with this, we have allocated over 70 per cent of our growth capex to value-enhancing downstream segments," Satish Pai, managing director, Hindalco Industries, said in a media call.

Novelis, a Hindalco subsidiary that makes flat-rolled aluminium products, reported net income from continuing operations at $217 million, up 21 per cent YoY, mainly driven by lower interest expense in Q4. Revenue for the quarter for Novelis, which is headquartered in the US, stood at $4.8 billion, up 34 per cent YoY, driven by higher global aluminium prices.

Novelis had recently announced a capital expenditure (capex) of $2.5 billion to build a new recycling and rolling plant in the US in the largest greenfield expansion plan by the Aditya Birla group.

This announcement had taken capex plans committed by Novelis to $3.4 billion, with four other new capex initiatives underway, including two in the US and one each in South Korea and China.