L&T's Q2 net up 15%, stock falls 5% to hit 52-week low

Company says the ground level inputs indicate that it may take further time for significant pick-up in business opportunities

Engineering and construction major Larsen & Toubro Ltd on Friday reported a 15.5% rise in its second-quarter net profit after generating more revenue from its infrastructure and power businesses, but missed analyst forecasts.

Larsen, a $15-billion business with interests in engineering, construction, financial services and logistics, said it made Rs Rs 996 crore in the three months to the end of September, up from Rs 861 rore a year earlier.

Analysts had forecast a consolidated net profit of Rs 1,003 crore, Thomson Reuters data shows.

Larsen has disappointed investors in recent quarters with worse-than-expected revenue growth amid a slowdown among oil and gas clients and continued weakness in India, and has pledged to sell some assets and simplify its structure to boost returns.

Shares of L&T touched 52-week low of Rs 1,400, down 5%, on the BSE after the company said the ground level inputs indicate that it may take further time for significant pick-up in business opportunities.

Slowing global economics, depressed commodity prices, weakening currencies and capital outflows are constraining the growth prospects of emerging economics. Uncertainties in the financial markets and excess capacities across the world have also impacted the investment sentiment, L&T said in a future outlook.