Birla Corp Q1 results: Consolidated net profit falls 3.6% to Rs 59.71 cr

M P Birla group flagship, Birla Corporation, recorded a 3.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) drop in consolidated net profit to Rs 59.71 crore in the quarter from April to June (or Q1 of financial year 2024). The net profit in the year-ago period stood at Rs 61.92 crore.

The company attributed this decline to higher depreciation and interest costs. However, cash profit at Rs 217 crore was up by 6.5 per cent, owing to improved sales and a substantial decrease in power and fuel costs, it explained.

Total income at Rs 2424.63 crore saw an increase of 9.3 per cent, as cement volumes grew by 12.2 per cent.

The capacity utilisation during the quarter was at 91 per cent. The company stated that the demand for cement was 'robust', except in June (due to unseasonal rainfall and floods in some core markets), but prices remained soft. This impacted core markets, and the realisation per tonne for the June quarter was 2.4 per cent lower than the same period last year. However, moderation in fuel costs led to a 2.9 per cent increase in Ebitda per tonne.

With the tail-end of the monsoon approaching and government spending on infrastructure, the company does not anticipate any significant drop in prices.