JK Lakshmi net up four-fold

Corporate Scorecard

JK Lakshmi Cement (JKLC) posted a four-fold increase in its net profit at Rs 55 crore for the December 2006 quarter compared with Rs 11.33 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.

The company's net sales grew to Rs 228.64 crore from Rs 152.86 crore, up around 50 per cent, in the same period.

The operating margins of the north India-based manufacturer increased by 32 per cent, owing to higher capacity utilisation and better realisation. Earnings per share (EPS) for the quarter stood at Rs 9.65 compared with Rs 2.05 in the period under review.

The company's effective cement capacity utilisation was 112 per cent during the quarter. The cement production increased by 6 per cent to 0.83 million tonne, whereas the despatches grew by 5 per cent to 0.85 million tonne.

Higher realisations from the sale of OPC and blended cement added to the company's profitability. Efforts on the redistribution of marketing areas to contain the logistics cost have also yielded good results, the company said in a statement.

JKLC, with a current capacity of 2.95 million tonne, is setting up a new kiln in Sirohi (Rajasthan) at an investment of Rs 302 crore. The capacity of the plant is expected to go up to 5 million tonne by September 2008.

The company is also setting up a 36 mw power plant, which is expected to be operational by March 2007.

"This plant will further add to our cost savings. Higher capacities in FY09 will lead to full-scale utilisation of facilities and result in higher operating margins," said Bharat Hari Singhania, managing director of the company.

The company has its presence in Rajasthan, Gujarat, Maharashtra, Punjab, Haryana, Delhi, Uttar Pradesh, Uttaranchal, Himachal Pradesh and Jammu & Kashmir. It also manufactures ready-mix concrete under the brand JK Lakshmiplast.