Mahindra & Mahindra Q3 profit rises 12%, matches estimates

Mumbai: Auto major Mahindra & Mahindra today reported an 11.7 per cent increase in standalone net profit to Rs 934.06 crore in the quarter ended December 31, riding on its farm equipment business.

The company had posted a profit of Rs 836.19 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year, Mahindra & Mahindra said in a statement.

Net sales declined to Rs 10,404.91 crore from Rs 10,642.60 crore a year earlier.

The company said the combined profit after tax of M&M and Mahindra Vehicle Manufacturers Ltd (MVML), a 100 per cent subsidiary, was up 9.3 per cent at Rs 1,000.1 crore.

Gross income of the combined entity was Rs 11,270 crore as compared to Rs 11,522.3 crore, it added.

"The deceleration in gross revenues in the quarter was due to the challenging times the Indian auto industry is currently passing through with volumes shrinking by 11.7 per cent in Q3FY14," the company said.

The entity could deliver a healthy increase in operating margin and growth in profit in the quarter due to strong sales in its farm equipment sector and a tight control on material costs and all expenses, it added.

The farm equipment sector clocked a revenue of Rs 4,098.67 crore, up from Rs 3,403.97 crore in the year-ago period.

The company said it sold 54,164 passenger utility vehicles in the third quarter, constituting a market share of 38.2 per cent.

It sold 1,967 units of Verito and Verito Vibe cars. The company also exported 8,492 vehicles during the quarter.

During the third quarter, the company sold 1,81,566 tractors compared with 1,50,562 units in the corresponding period of the previous financial year.

Revenue from the automotive segment was down to Rs 6453.16 crore from Rs 7,360.50 crore a year earlier, it added.

The company said it maintained a cautious and watchful outlook on the economy with future policy direction to be critically dependent on the outcome of the parliamentary elections.