Amit Panday
New Delhi: India’s largest two-wheeler manufacturer Hero MotoCorp Ltd has posted 39% year-on-year growth in Q4 FY21 net profit at Rs 865 crore, the company said on Thursday.
Hero’s revenue from operations for the March quarter stood at INR 8,686 crore, up 39% YoY. The company’s revenues were INR 6,238 crore in the year-ago period. Its earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) margin for the quarter were at 13.9%.
The company’s financial performance was driven by an impressive growth of 18.5% YoY in its wholesale volumes at 15.68 lakh units for the March quarter of the last fiscal. It had sold 13.23 lakh units in the year-ago period.
The company said it has been able to drive profitable growth through the combination of key strategic initiatives such as acceleration of Leap-II savings programme, an internal cost saving programme, to offset the higher commodity prices and input costs.
According to Niranjan Gupta, chief financial officer, Hero MotoCorp, the company was able to reduce overhead costs and CapEx on account of strict financial discipline and prioritisation of projects.
FY2021 was one of the most challenging periods for the entire world due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic. While a late recovery towards the second half of the FY21 saw the company gain strong volumes, the broader market continues to suffer in view of the recent escalations in Covid-19 casesPawan Munjal, chairman and chief executive officer, Hero MotoCorp
“Our tight working capital management has further helped in ensuring the much needed liquidity buffer in these times. Outstanding teamwork and timely measures helped us put the company on a stable course of recovery and eventual growth,” he said.For the full year, Hero MotoCorp reported net profit of INR 2,964 crore, down 18% YoY on account of the 45-day nationwide lockdown imposed during the June quarter last fiscal. Revenue from operations for FY21 stood at NR 30,801 crore, up 6.8% YoY despite the COVID-led disruptions in H1 FY21.
“FY2021 was one of the most challenging periods for the entire world due to the outbreak of the Coronavirus pandemic. While a late recovery towards the second half of FY21 saw the company gain strong volumes, the broader market continues to suffer in view of the recent escalations in COVID-19 cases,” Pawan Munjal, chairman and chief executive officer, Hero MotoCorp, said.
Munjal added that the company keeps a close watch on the rapidly evolving situation and continues to remain cautiously optimistic about the demand for personal mobility despite the challenging circumstances.
Hero MotoCorp, which has recently entered into a partnership with Taiwan’s electric vehicle battery swapping network, is also planning to launch its first EV this fiscal.
“In line with our commitment to sustainability, Hero MotoCorp will continue to strengthen efforts to drive in green mobility which will see us launch our first electric vehicle in this financial year,” Munjal said.
Meanwhile, Gupta expects to see normalcy from Q2 with a likely slowdown in COVID-19 cases and higher vaccination levels.
“A good monsoon and harvest season and a rebound in GDP should aid the industry’s recovery from Q2 onwards. The company also expects a significant growth in its global business with a renewed thrust on developing key-overseas markets,” Gupta added.
Hero MotoCorp has extended its plant shut down, early scheduled for April 22 to May 1 to May 9 owing to the rapidly spreading virus.
“The plant operations will resume on May 10,” the company said. However, the employees in its corporate offices will continue to work from home.
With more states announcing lockdowns and some more OEMs expecting to go for maintenance shutdowns, as many as 50 per cent of the dealers are likely to be impacted by the move, it added.
