L&T jumps on good order book position

L&T rose 3.48% to Rs 902.75 at 9:19 IST on BSE after the company said order book rose 11% to Rs 1.76 lakh crore as at 30 September 2013 over 30 September 2012.

The company unveiled its order book position after announcing Q2 September 2013 results after market hours on Friday, 18 October 2013.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 55.40 points, or 0.27%, to 20,938.29.

On BSE, 92,000 shares were traded in the counter compared with average volume of 3.91 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 904.35 and a low of Rs 904 so far during the day. The stock hit a 52-week high of Rs 1,146.34 on 29 October 2012. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 678.10 on 28 August 2013.

The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 18 October 2013, rising 4.37% compared with the Sensex's 4.61% rise. The scrip had also underperformed the market in past one quarter, falling 11.47% as against Sensex's 3.75% rise.

The large -cap engineering and construction giant has an equity capital of Rs 185.05 crore. Face value per share is Rs 2.

L&T's net profit fell 14.05% to Rs 977.51 crore on 10.59% rise in total income to Rs 14958.93 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012. However, L&T reported 7% rise in recurring profit after tax (PAT) to Rs 978 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012.

L&T said orders inflow rose 27% to Rs 26533 crore in Q2 September 2013 over Q2 September 2012. International order inflow more than doubled contributing 43% of the total order inflow on the back of a few orders for large projects in the Middle East. The major orders came from infrastructure and hydrocarbon segments, L&T said.

L&T said order book rose 11% to Rs 1.76 lakh crore as at 30 September 2013 over 30 September 2012. International order book constituted 15% of the total order book.

In its outlook, L&T said that the macro-economic environment continues to remain weak and uncertain on account of the twin deficits, tight liquidity, persistent inflation and heightened volatility in the financial markets. Investment climate in the economy is yet to show sign of recovery. Deferral of new projects and delayed decision making / execution features the weak performance of the core sector this far.

The recent government measures such as improved allocation of resources to kick-start the stalled projects are, however, a welcome move to improve the investment sentiment, L&T said.

The strategy of business development in select international markets has started yielding results as is evident from the increased share of international business. The company continues to focus on emerging prospects in the Middle East and other select international markets as part of its twin strategy to hedge against domestic slow down and attain global competitiveness, it said.

With its growing order book, increased international presence and improved competitiveness, the company said it is hopeful of meeting its growth aspirations in the near and medium term.

L&T is a $14 billion technology, engineering, construction, manufacturing and financial services conglomerate, with global operations. L&T Construction is a brand of Larsen & Toubro.

Powered by Capital Market - Live News