 "Escorts-tractor")
Farm equipment and engineering major Escorts Ltd on Friday reported over two-fold jump in consolidated net profit to Rs 285.41 crore in the fourth quarter ended March 2021, mainly driven by robust sales.
The company had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 127.73 crore in the same period previous fiscal, Escorts Ltd said in a regulatory filing.
Its consolidated revenue from operations during the period under review stood at Rs 2,228.75 crore as against Rs 1,385.65 crore a year ago, it added.
Tractor sales were up by 62.1 per cent at 32,588 units during the fourth quarter, Escorts said.
For the fiscal ended March 31, Escorts Ltd said its consolidated net profit was at Rs 871.63 crore as compared to Rs 471.72 crore in FY20, a growth of 85 per cent.
Consolidated revenue from operations in 2020-21 was Rs 7,014.42 crore against Rs 5,810.09 crore in 2019-20, it added.
For FY21, tractor sales were up 24.1 per cent at 1,06,741 units, it added.
Escorts Ltd Chairman and Managing Director Nikhil Nanda said, "Agri machinery industry remained buoyant in Q4 of FY21 owing to positive macroeconomic factors and pent-up demand from the first and second quarters of the year. Escorts did well in this space by registering a higher share of the market in Q4 than our average market share of the year".
He, however, said while "currently the demand is subdued and various state lockdowns are impacting the supply chain, we believe this is a temporary phase which shall soon be over".
"Following all government guidelines, we are making all efforts to ensure that farming communities are well served in the upcoming sowing season," Nanda said, adding the entire country is under a severe impact of the second wave of the pandemic and this time it has impacted the rural geographies as well, affecting Escorts' core customer base.
Stating that the company's topmost priority at this time is the safety and well-being of its customers, dealers, suppliers and employees, he said, "We are taking all possible measures to support all our stakeholders to sail through these challenging times. Escorts, and the sectors we operate in, proved their resilience during the first wave. We are sure we will overcome this wave too with collective strength and safeguards".
The company said its board has recommended a total dividend of 75 per cent comprising a normal final dividend of 50 per cent and one time 'Platinum jubilee year' special dividend of 25 per cent i.e. total dividend of Rs 7.5 per share of face value Rs 10 for the financial year 2020-21 as against the dividend of Rs 2.5 per share of the face value of Rs 10 for 2019-20.
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