Raymond Q3 net profit falls 28% to Rs 40.11 crore

Diversified group Raymond today reported a decline of 28.46 per cent in consolidated net profit at Rs 40.11 crore for the third quarter ended December.
The company had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 56.07 crore during the October-December period of previous financial year.
However, Raymond's total consolidated income from operations during the quarter under review increased by 7.36 per cent to Rs 1,484.40 crore as against Rs 1,382.58 crore during the same period of last fiscal, Raymond said in a BSE filing.
"The global economic environment has been challenging with slowdown in major world economies and falling commodity prices.

"This has resulted in demand slowdown in export market and subdued consumer demand. Despite these challenges, we registered a healthy top line growth driven by strong performance in the textile and apparel segment," said Gautam Hari Singhania, CMD, Raymond Ltd.
He added: "However, the profitability was impacted due to higher bonus provision as per statutory requirement coupled with our investment in brand building and retail network expansion."
Raymond shares today closed 2.90 per cent up at Rs 386.80 apiece on the BSE.