Bharat Forge Q4 net profit jumps threefold to Rs 299.5 crore

Auto components major Bharat Forge Monday reported a nearly threefold jump in its standalone net profit to Rs 299.5 crore for the March quarter. The company had posted a standalone net profit of Rs 100.33 crore in the corresponding quarter a year ago, Bharat Forge said in a regulatory filing. Its total income stood at Rs 1,718.72 crore as against Rs 1,500.83 crore in the year-ago quarter, it added.

For the full year 2018-19, the firm's consolidated net profit stood at Rs 1,032.59 crore as compared with Rs 753.97 crore a year ago, a growth of 36.95 per cent, it said. Total consolidated income for the year was Rs 10,348.52 crore as compared to Rs 8,556.68 crore in the previous fiscal. Bharat Forge Chairman and Managing Director B N Kalyani said the financial year 2018-19 has been a record year for the company with strong growth in revenue and profit.

"During the year, the company has secured business wins of USD 50 million across sectors and geographies. An encouraging trend is the large proportion of wins driven by our work on new product development," he added.

The company said its board of directors in its meeting on Monday recommended a final dividend of 125 per cent at Rs 2.5 per equity share of Rs 2 each for the financial year ended March 2019 On the outlook, Kalyani said after a strong two-year performance, the company is starting to witness demand flatten out in exports.

"The condition is compounded by the lack of momentum in the domestic market across sectors. We expect the situation to improve in the coming months," he added. The company will focus on navigating through the challenging demand environment, utilising a combination of accelerated new product development and cost optimisation, he said.