Amara Raja Batteries jumped 3.88% to Rs 343.75 at 13:06 IST on BSE after net profit rose 17.43% to Rs 95.01 crore on 13.69% increase in net sales to Rs 859.95 crore in Q3 December 2013 over Q3 December 2012.
The result was announced during trading hours today, 23 January 2014.
Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was up 13.93 points, or 0.07%, to 21,351.60.
On BSE, so far 3.64 lakh shares were traded in the counter, compared with an average volume of 39,481 shares in the past one quarter.
The stock hit a high of Rs 355 and a low of Rs 323.80 so far during the day. The stock hit a record high of Rs 365.70 on 19 December 2013. The stock hit a 52-week low of Rs 207.75 on 7 August 2013.
The stock had underperformed the market over the past one month till 22 January 2014, sliding 7.97% compared with the Sensex's 1.22% rise. The scrip had outperformed the market in past one quarter, rising 5.65% as against Sensex's 2.27% rise.
The mid-cap industrial and automotive battery maker has an equity capital of Rs 17.08 crore. Face value per share is Re 1.
Amara Raja Batteries said the automotive battery business reported double digit growth in revenue, aided by strong volume expansion in two-wheeler batteries and marginal volume growth in four-wheeler batteries. While the OEM demand continued to be sluggish, an early sign of demand slowdown in four-wheeler replacement was visible in Q3. The trading volume in home UPS business suffered due to unfavorable season. The ongoing capacity expansions in two-wheeler and four-wheeler battery product lines are progressing as envisaged, the company said.
The industrial battery business reported flat volume for the quarter compared to previous year, due to capacity constraints and subdued demand for UPS batteries. However the revenues grew in double digit owing to inflation and better product mix. The company continues to focus on enhancing the quality of business through various initiatives in the market place. In the UPS segment, the company expanded the Quanta product range with the introduction of 12V-120 Ah and 12V-150 Ah batteries. Now, the company has widest product range for optimal battery sizing by the UPS OEM's and other customers, the company said in a statement.
The company said it commissioned on 22 January 2014 the modern and fully integrated MVRLA battery plant in a new location at Chittoor, Andhra Pradesh. The trial runs and product validation processes are under way. The plant is expected to commence supplies in full scale from March 2014 to support the growth momentum.
Commenting on the Q3 performance, Mr. Jayadev Galla, Vice Chairman and Managing Director, Amara Raja Batteries said, "It's heartening to deliver a consistent good performance despite challenging economy, volatile rupee and sluggish demand in the automotive OEM and UPS sectors. However, an early sign of slowdown in growth rate of four-wheeler automotive replacement demand requires close watch and innovative approach to sustain double digit volume growth. The successful completion of MVRLA capacity expansion and other ongoing capacity expansions in various product lines, will provide enough momentum to the growth in line with our strategic plan for the five years period leading to FY19"
Amara Raja Batteries, a company with 26% equity each from Galla Family and Johnson Controls Inc, USA, is the technology leader and is one of the largest manufacturers of lead acid batteries for both industrial and automotive applications in the Indian storage battery industry. Amara Raja is a leading manufacturer of automotive batteries under the brands - Amaron and Powerzone.
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