Wheels India reports net profit at Rs 15.14 cr for July-September quarter

Wheels India Ltd, manufacturer of steel wheels for automobiles has reported net profit at Rs 15.14 crore during the quarter ending September 30, 2022, the company said on Tuesday.

The company had reported net profits at Rs 21.2 crore during corresponding quarter previous year.

For the half year ending September 30, 2022, the net profits of the company stood at Rs 25.8 crore as against Rs 31.3 crore registered in the corresponding period last year.

Revenues for the quarter ending September 30, 2022 grew to Rs 1,109 crore as compared to Rs 911 crore registered in the same period last year.

Revenues for the six-month period ending September 30, 2022 rose to Rs 2,166 crore as compared to Rs 1,586 crore recorded same period of last year.

The revenue growth was driven by a good recovery in the domestic CV market. Exports have been impacted especially in retail segments in the United States and European Union, company Managing Director Srivats Ram said.

The company has commenced production of machining of large castings for the windmills at its plant in Thervoy Kandigai, the company said.

Export contribution stood at over 23 per cent of the company's overall revenue for the first half of the year.

Briefing reporters, Ram said the big impact on the second quarter performance was from the interest cost increase. "We are looking at holding back some of the CapEx (capital expenditure) for the moment. While the CapEx plan was for about Rs 200 crore this year, we are cutting it by about 25 per cent," he said.

The large chunk of Rs 150 crore this year would be for the new machining plant in Thervoy Kandigai. "We are looking at improving operational efficiency", he said.

Ram said the company's construction equipment segment did well in the first half and expect the trend to continue into second half of the year.

"We have been talking to large customers in Japan and the United States. They are positive about the prospects of growth in the next year," he said.

Ram said the export was impacted during the second quarter of the financial year as customers were making inventory adjustments.

"We expect it to recover by December. Mexico and Brazil have done well for us in the exports front," he said.