Sundaram Finance Q4 drops 10%

Revenue sees marginal rise

Sundaram Finance Ltd has reported a near 10 per cent drop in net profit to Rs 90.67 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2015, as against Rs 100.24 crore for the corresponding .

Total income during the quarter rose slightly to Rs 577.77 crore, up from Rs 547.36 crore a year ago. The housing finance company is planning to raise around Rs 3,500 crore through debentures and securitisation.

For the full financial year 2014-15, the company registered a three per cent increase in its net profit to Rs 454 crore, as against Rs 442 crore a year ago.

Disbursements crossed Rs 10,000 crore and stood at Rs 10,012 crore, clocking a growth of three per cent over Rs 9,719 crore seen in the previous year.

TT Srinivasaraghavan, managing director, Sundaram Finance Ltd, said the company had cautioned last year that an immediate recovery was not in sight and the slowdown could last longer than was broadly expected.

"Events during the year only confirmed this apprehension. While there was a recovery in the commercial vehicle segment, it came off from a smaller base. We were however able to increase our market share in the segment," he said.

On the outlook for the year, Srinivasaraghavan said, "After a rather extended period of slowdown, we are hopeful this will be a year of recovery in all our business segments. However, hardening global crude prices and a poor monsoon could still prove a dampener to the growth prospects."

He said that there had been green shoots in some segments, including mining could open up some opportunities. Some road projects getting approved could trigger some revival.

Tractor segment is an area where the company is improving its footprint. "These are virgin areas for us where we believe there is enough headroom for us to grow," said Srinivasaraghavan.