Nippon India MF Q4 PAT slumps 97 pc to Rs 4.13 cr

Nippon Life Asset Management on Friday posted a 97 per cent plunge in profit after tax to Rs 4.13 crore for the three months ended March.

In comparison, the company had posted a profit after tax (PAT) of Rs 151.66 crore in the year-ago period, Nippon India Mutual Fund said in a regulatory filing to stock exchanges.

The company attributed the plunge in quarterly profit to mark-to-market losses in treasury operations due to market volatility in March.

Besides, total income fell to Rs 149.56 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 31, this year, from Rs 397.5 crore in the same period preceding fiscal.

The board has also recommended a final dividend of Rs 2 per equity share for the financial year ended March 31, 2020. This is subject to shareholders' approval at the ensuing annual general meeting.

With this, the total dividend for the financial year 2019-20 would be Rs 5 per equity share, including an interim dividend of Rs 3 per equity share distributed in February 2020.

For the entire fiscal 2019-20, Nippon India MF posted a PAT of Rs 415.76 crore as compared to Rs 487.07 crore in the previous financial year.

The company's total income declined to Rs 1,193.21 crore in the last fiscal from Rs 1,650 crore in 2018-19.

Responding to the overall economic slowdown due to the COVID-19 crisis, and the resultant market uncertainties, the Board, on a conservative note, decided that all NIMF's schemes will make fresh investments in AA and above rated issuers only, the company's CEO Sundeep Sikka said.