Amara Raja Batteries gains after a block deal

Amara Raja Batteries rose 1.64% to Rs 318.90 at 14:14 IST on BSE after a block deal of 2.6 lakh shares was executed on BSE at Rs 317 per share at 12:53 IST.

The block deal constitutes 0.15% of Amara Raja Batteries' equity.

Meanwhile, the S&P BSE Sensex was up 34.80 points or 0.17% at 20,885.54.

On BSE, 2.99 lakh shares were traded in the counter as against average daily volume of 39,599 shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 322.45 and a low of Rs 313.90 so far during the day. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 341 on Monday, 18 November 2013. The stock had hit a 52-week low of Rs 207.75 on 7 August 2013.

The stock had outperformed the market over the past one month till 18 November 2013, rising 1.16% compared with the Sensex's 0.15% fall. The scrip had also outperformed the market in past one quarter, advancing 20.37% as against Sensex's 12.11% rise.

The mid-cap company has equity capital of Rs 17.08 crore. Face value per share is Re 1.

Amara Raja Batteries' net profit rose 34.92% to Rs 94.58 crore on 12.36% growth in net sales excluding other income to Rs 804.72 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012. Profit before tax (PBT) rose 31.57% to Rs 133.90 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012. The company announced the Q2 result after market hours on 14 November 2013.

The Automotive battery business reported double digit growth in revenue, aided by strong volume expansion both in Four-wheeler and Two-wheeler batteries in the replacement market, while the OEM demand continued to be sluggish. The trading volume in home UPS business suffered due to unfavorable season on account of mild summer and good monsoon. The supplies of Two-wheeler batteries to Honda Motors have picked up momentum in line with their throughput enhancement, the company said in a statement. Amara Raja Batteries said that the company's effort to enhance the capacities of Two-wheeler battery in the existing plant has witnessed some delay and is likely to go on stream by end January 2014. The enhanced capacities will support the company to commence business with other major Two-wheeler OEMs and to grow the aftermarket business in a big manner, it said. The green field project for enhancement of Four-wheeler capacity is progressing as per schedule and is likely to commence production by Q2 of next financial year, the company said in a statement.

The Industrial battery business has also reported double digit revenue growth despite capacity constraints and subdued demand for UPS batteries. The company said it has substantially enhanced the quality of business through various initiatives in the market coupled with internal efficiencies to improve overall profitability. The company's Quick Recharge series of telecom batteries (Powerstack) are gaining acceptance from all tower companies and operators enhancing the demand, it said. While the OEM demand in UPS sector is under stress, the preference for the company's UPS batteries (Quanta) in replacement market is encouraging, the company said in a statement.

Amara Raja Batteries said it is confident of continuing its growth in industrial battery business enabled by the ongoing capacity expansions and preferred vendor status built over the years both in the Telecom and UPS sectors. The Medium VRLA battery capacity expansion project will be completed in January 2014 with about 4 months delay due to conscious change in specifications and delay in supply of certain key equipment. Also the Large VRLA expanded capacity will support the business from February 2014, the company said in a statement.

Amara Raja Batteries is one of the largest manufacturers of lead acid batteries for both industrial and automotive applications in the Indian storage battery industry.

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