Tobacco,paper units lift ITCs net by 17 per cent

FMCG major ITC on Thursday posted a 17.4 growth in profit after tax for the first quarter of 2009-10 at Rs 878.70 crore,compared to Rs 748.67 crore...

FMCG major ITC on Thursday posted a 17.4 growth in profit after tax for the first quarter of 2009-10 at Rs 878.70 crore,compared to Rs 748.67 crore in the corresponding period in 2008-09. Though the FMCG,driven primarily by cigarette sales,and paper and packaging businesses grew in net revenues by 19 and 16,respectively,the overall growth of the quarter was muted at 4.7 largely due to the de-growth in the hotels and agri businesses. According to Anand Shah,analyst with Angel Broking,the topline is under pressure due to the 48 decline in the hotels and agri businesses. The company is being driven by its cigarette business which registered a 14.4 growth this quarter, he added.

Biocon PAT zooms 261 per cent to Rs 54 crore

Bangalore: Bangalore based biotech major Biocon registered an 83 jump in consolidated revenues including its German subsidiary AxiCorp for the first quarter ended June 30,rising to Rs 505 crore from Rs 277 crore in the corresponding quarter of the previous fiscal. Excluding AxiCorp,the companys revenue increased 14 per cent YoY to Rs 316 crore while operating profits grew 45 per cent to Rs 101 crore. Profit after tax PAT surged 261 per cent to Rs 54 crore for the quarter,while operating margins were sustained at 32 per cent. Kiran Mazumdar Shaw,chairman and managing director of Biocon,said,Biocons Q1 10 performance has delivered robust growth across all segments. Syngene has had a particularly strong quarter demonstrating good returns on the investments made over the last two years.

ACC,Ambuja log volume and sales growth

Mumbai: In line with the growth momentum of core sectors,cement majors ACC Ltd and Ambuja Cements both Holcim Group companies on Thursday reported growth in volumes and revenue for the quarter ended June 2009. ACC Ltd,Indias largest cement producer,reported growth of 85 per cent in its net profit to Rs 471 crore during the quarter against Rs 255 crore in the corresponding quarter last year. Similarly,Ambuja Cements Ltd also reported a growth of 18.1 per cent in its net sales to Rs 1,847 crore during the quarter against Rs 1,564 crore last year. The companys net profit,however,dipped 43.7 per cent to Rs 325 crore against Rs 577 crore in the same period last year.

MRPL net plunges 50 pc

New Delhi: Mangalore Refinery amp; Petrochemicals Ltd,a subsidiary of Oil amp; Natural Gas Corp ONGC,on Thursday reported a 50 per cent drop in net profit at Rs 420 crore for the April-June quarter. MRPL earned 7.98 on processing every barrel of crude in the quarter,as compared to 18.36 per barrel gross refining margin in the corresponding quarter of the previous year,company managing director Uttam Kumar Basu told reporters. Net profit was down from Rs 845 crore in Q1 of 2008-09 fiscal to Rs 420 crore in April-June this year. Turnover dipped 40 per cent to Rs 7,171 crore. Exports slipped 36 per cent to Rs 1,822 crore from Rs 2,852 crore a year ago. The company realised 62.48 per barrel for the products it sold against 130.60 a year ago.

Idea net up at Rs 297 crore

New Delhi: Idea Cellular on Thursday reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 297.06 crore for the quarter ended June 30 against Rs 263.09 crore in the same quarter last fiscal. Total income rose to Rs 2,975.90 crore during the June quarter from Rs 2,178.07 crore in the same period in the last fiscal. The operating results of the quarter are not comparable to earlier quarters due to lowering of the termination charges by the telecom regulator. On a standalone basis,Idea Cellular reported a net profit of Rs 309.21 crore for the June quarter this fiscal,while it had a net profit of Rs 269.53 crore in the corresponding period last fiscal.

Apollo Tyres net up 95 pc

New Delhi: Apollo Tyres has reported a 95 per cent rise in its net profit to Rs 94.7 crore from its India operations during the April-June quarter of 2009-10 fiscal from Rs 48.6 crore recorded in the year-ago period,a press release said on Thursday. Operating profit stood at Rs194.8 crore during the quarter. The director board also approved a 45 per cent dividend at the company8217;s 36th AGM. FE