Ashok Leyland Q3 net profit dips 13% to Rs 185.88 cr

The company said that Q3 has been quite challenging due to the steep increase in material cost

Ashok Leyland Ltd has posted a decline of 13% in net profit to Rs 185.88 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, as compared to Rs 213.70 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015.

Vinod K Dasari, managing director and CEO, Ashok Leyland said that the third quarter has been quite challenging for the industry primarily due to the steep increase in material cost.

Demonetisation had an impact and the industry is recovering from it. Despite these challenges, the company has maintained healthy operating margins.

He expects pre-buy in the fourth quarter owing to BS-IV implementation in 2017-18 along with company's recent introductions in the ICV and LCV segments to have a positive impact on the company's volumes in the coming quarters.

Total income has increased to Rs 4,747.10 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2016, from Rs 4,396.15 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2015.

Gopal Mahadevan, CFO, Ashok Leyland added that the prevailing challenges in the market notwithstanding, the company continued to focus on profitable growth.

The company has maintained double-digit EBITDA despite absorbing the increased input costs.