Godrej Agrovet Ltd (GAVL) on Monday reported a 42.65 per cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 69.20 crore during the fourth quarter ended March 31 due to higher expenses.
The company's net profit stood at Rs 120.68 crore in the year-ago period, it said in a regulatory filing.
Its income rose to Rs 1,627.68 crore during January-March quarter from Rs 1,390.91 crore in the year-ago quarter.
Total expenses also rose to Rs 1,548.05 crore as against Rs 1,349.17 crore a year ago.
For fiscal 2019-20, the company's consolidated net profit declined to Rs 300.58 crore as against Rs 349.33 crore in the previous year.
Total income increased to Rs 6,964.04 crore in FY20 from Rs 5,917.73 crore a year ago.
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Expenses also shot up to Rs 6,665.25 crore during the year from Rs 5,593.95 crore in 2018-19.
The company said its performance had started showing good recovery in the beginning of the fourth quarter, but false rumours of coronavirus infection through poultry in beginning of February 2020 significantly impacted volume, prices and thereby the profitability of two businesses -- animal feed and Godrej Tyson.
Further, the outbreak of COVID-19 in mid-March 2020 in India affected sales in other segments also. This adversely impacted the performance of the fourth quarter, it said.
However, on the positive side, performance in Astec, oil palm plantation and aqua feed was strong which supported the quarterly performance, it added.
The company, whose businesses are part of essential commodities, said it resumed operations in April 2020 after obtaining necessary approvals from local authorities.
The factories are currently operational and have deployed health and safety protocols across all locations.
The company said it is well-equipped to manage the current situation based on the strong business continuity plan put in place.
"The demand for our products remains firm and our teams are relentlessly working towards providing uninterrupted supply of our essential products (feed, agrochemicals, dairy products, and poultry and processed food products) for animal husbandry, crop protection and household consumption," it added.