*(The sector made a loss in the same year-ago quarter so comparisons are not possible)
The healthy results have seen profit margins increase by between 187 and 212 basis points each. Operating profit margins increased by 187 basis points at 20.19 per cent over the corresponding period last year. Net profit margins soared by 212 basis points to 11.14 per cent. (One basis point is one hundredth of a per cent).
Interest cost, however, continues to be a major concern and has increased 13.54 per cent. Provision for depreciation is up by a modest 16.02 per cent while the tax provision has gone up by 74.84 per cent.
Overall, the sales growth rate is unduly biased towards 38 per cent of the companies that have grown faster than the growth rate set by 808 companies.
These 306 companies account for 51 per cent of the sales and 41 per cent of the net profit of the sample companies. These firms have recorded 60 per cent rise in sales and 55 per cent rise in net profit.
On the profit front, 25 per cent of the firms, or 202 of them, have posted net profit growth of over 100 per cent each. These firms have an aggregate net profit growth of 253 per cent. If one excludes these firms from the sample, the remaining 606 companies have posted a healthy 38 per rise in net profit.
Nevertheless, as many as 90 firms have recorded net profit growth between 50 and 99 per cent while 71 are back in the black after net losses in the corresponding year-ago quarter. As many as 153 firms reported net losses against net profit in the year-ago quarter and 116 firms continued in the red.
The major sectors that have bucked the trend are automobile, fertilisers, power, personal care and sugar.
The automobile sector has disappointed the most, with heavy commercial vehicle maker Tata Motors registering a modest 11.6 per cent rise in sales on 37.1 per cent growth in sales.
The net profit of car and two-wheeler manufacturers has increased by a modest 12 per cent. The net profit of sugar firms has declined by 85 per cent, while personal care companies showed a marginal 4 per cent increase in net profits.
