Grasim net profit up one per cent at Rs 818 cr

During the Q4 period,revenue rose by 5 per cent at Rs 7,672 crore as against Rs 7,283 crore,a company statement said here.

The PBIDT (Profit Before Interest,Depreciation & Taxes),however,stood 5 per cent lower at Rs 1,786 crore as against Rs 1,883 crore in the fourth quarter of FY12.

The company said it has reported improved performance for FY13,achieving higher revenue and PBIDT despite the economic slowdown as reflected in decline in the GDP growth to 5 per cent.

The company’s revenue increased by 11 per cent at Rs 27,904 crore in FY13 as against Rs 25,245 crore last fiscal. PBIDT increased from Rs 6,321 crore to Rs 6,543 crore,a growth of 4 per cent,led by improved volumes in its VSF business and cost optimisation.

Net profit during the year increased 2 per cent at Rs 2,704 crore as compared to Rs 2,647 crore in FY12.

The Board of Directors recommended a dividend of Rs 22.50 per share,same as last year. The total outflow on account of the dividend would be Rs 216 crore (Including

corporate tax on dividend),the release said.

The company said the sluggishness in the global economy continued to impact the textile industry. Fibre prices remained volatile due to the surplus Viscose Staple Fibre

(VSF) capacity in China and high cotton inventory.

The company’s cement Subsidiary,UltraTech Cement posted combined cement and clinker sales for the quarter at 12.05 million tonnes.

Net revenue stood at Rs 5,819 crore as compared to Rs 5,650 crore. Profit after tax was Rs 753 crore (after providing for the additional deferred tax liability of Rs 87

crore) as compared to Rs 872 crore in fourth quarter of FY12.

The quarter witnessed continuing pressure on input and logistics costs,given the increase in railway freight and hike in diesel prices though there was some relief on account of the softening in prices of imported coal,the release said.

The company said its brown-field VSF expansion at Harihar in Karnataka has been completed with the commissioning of Phase II with a capacity of 18,250 TPA in May 2013.

The greenfield project of VSF having capacity of 1,20,000 TPA at Vilayat in Gujarat is nearing completion and is expected to go on stream in the 2nd quarter.

The company’s chemical plant with a capacity of 1,82,500 TPA started commercial production in May 2013. There will be a gradual ramp-up in capacity in the first half of FY14,the release said.