Realty player Godrej Properties reported a nine per cent decline in net profit for the fourth quarter ended March 31 at Rs 48.34 crore due to higher expenditure.
The company had reported a net profit of Rs 53.21 crore in the corresponding quarter of the last fiscal.
The total income during the period under review rose by 38 per cent to Rs 429.19 crore as against Rs 311.86 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.
The total expenditure during the period increased to Rs 354.97 crore compared to 214.61 crore year-ago, mainly due to the loss the company incurred on delayed realisation of its commercial asset in Kolkata.
"The increase in expenditure is a reflection of the loss suffered due to the delay in monetisation of our commercial project in Kolkata--Godrej Waterside, due to which the net profit has come down. Nonetheless, our sales have improved despite a challenging environment," Managing Director and CEO Pirojsha Godrej told reporters here.
The company sold 4.14 lakh sqft of this Kolkata property for Rs 167 crore, which was much below the market rates given the challenging environment for commercial properties in the Kolkata market, he said.
Godrej Properties also sold two residential projects, with one each in Mumbai and Bangalore, aggregating to over 4 lakh sqft, during the quarter.
The company also added four projects in as many cities with 9.6 million sqft of saleable area during the January-March quarter.
It recorded a booking of Rs 1,066 crore during the quarter, which is for the first time in the company's history, Godrej said.
