Ashok Leyland Q4 Net down 66.5 pc at Rs 77 crore

Hinduja group flagship Ashok Leyland today reported a 66.50 per cent decline in its standalone net profit at Rs 77.02 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, hit by diminution in value of its investments.
The company, which has earmarked exceptional provisions of Rs 389 crore for 2015-16, including impairment in investments on certain joint ventures as well as overseas subsidiaries, had posted a standalone net profit of Rs 229.97 crore in the same period of the previous fiscal, Ashok Leyland said in a BSE filing.
Ashok Leyland said that its board in a meeting held today approved raising of funds in the excess of Rs 700 crore through issue of equity shares and secures/unsecured redeemable non-convertible debentures.

Standalone net sales during the period under review were up 32.86 per cent at Rs 5,893.48 crore as against Rs 4,435.53 crore in the year-ago period.
During the quarter, the company said it incurred an exceptional item cost of Rs 379.25 crore, which was mainly on account of diminution in value of investments.
For the entire 2015-16 fiscal, Ashok Leyland's consolidated net profit moved up nearly eight-fold to Rs 1,070.68 crore as against a net profit of Rs 133.89 crore in the previous fiscal, mainly boosted by gains from minority interest.

Its net sales were up 35.12 per cent to Rs 20,490.39 crore in 2015-16 as against Rs 15,163.92 crore in 2014-15.

Commenting on the results, Ashok Leyland Managing Director Vinod K Dasari said: "It has been a very successful and a fulfilling year for us. The investment we made in new products, the expansion of network as well as continued efforts in driving operational efficiency helped us maintain the growth momentum."
Over the outlook, he said the company will continue to invest in new products, technologies as well as enhance its domestic and global network further in pursuit of profitable growth.
The company said its results for the year also included exceptional provisions (net) of Rs 389 crore. These included provisions for impairment in investments in certain joint ventures as well as overseas subsidiaries.

"We are reviewing our portfolio of investments and rationalising them. In the current year, we have decided to impair some of our investments and this is in line with our strategy of increasing focus on the core business as we move forward. We would be completing this rationalisation process by end of FY 2016-17," Dasari said.
On the fundraising plans, the company said its board has approved issue of 13.5 crore equity shares of face value of Re 1 at a price to be determined by it later at the time of issue to eligible investors, including foreign, corporate bodies and banks.

The board has recommended a dividend of Re 0.95 per equity share of the face value of Re 1 each for the financial year ended March 31, 2016.
Shares of Ashok Leyland today settled 4.38 per cent lower at Rs 97.25 per scrip on BSE.