UltraTech Cement, the country’s largest cement maker capacity-wise, has posted a 53 per cent rise in its profit after tax (PAT) for the quarter ended September 30 at Rs 251 crore, compared with Rs 164 crore in the corresponding period last year. The company’s net sales during the period stood at Rs 1,541 crore against Rs 1,396 crore, up 10 per cent.
Improved realisations, higher sales and softened fuel prices helped the company put a good quarterly show.
“On a year-on-year basis, our realisation improved by 6 per cent from Rs 3,530 a tonne to Rs 3,740 a tonne in the September quarter. Along with that, our energy costs came down 30 per cent, as captive power plants contributed 70 per cent of our requirement,” K C Birla, chief financial officer of UltraTech, told Business Standard.
| CEMENTING BIZ | ||
| Figures in Rs cr | Change (%) | |
| Net sales | 1,541 | 10 |
| PBIDT | 501 | 54 |
| PAT | 251 | 53 |
| Realisation* | 3,740 | 6 |
| EPS | 20.15 | 53.00 |
| Sales** | 3.58 | 11.00 |
| * Rs/tonne, ** million tonnes Source: Company; % change over Q2 of FY09 | ||
The 23.1 million tonne company, part of the Aditya Birla group, sold 11 per cent more cement during the quarter, with its sales volumes reaching 3.58 million tonnes against 3.23 million tonnes last year. The earning per share for the quarter stood at Rs 20.15.
The company has a capital outlay of around Rs 2,000 crore to be spent over the next two years. The cement division of its parent company, Grasim, will be merged with UltraTech next year, taking the company’s overall capacity to close to 50 million tonnes per annum.
In its outlook, company said in a statement that despite a weak monsoon, industry demand may grow at 9 per cent during the current financial year. It added that new capacities in the sector, at various stages of commissioning, will inevitably result in pressure on margins.
On the BSE, the company’s share price on Friday closed weak at Rs 824.75, down 2.37 per cent.