Asian Paints Ltd.'s profit falls 5% to Rs 1,060 crore in the third quarter of this financial year due to one-time exceptional loss of Rs 158 crore, the company said in an exchange filing on Tuesday.
The exceptional loss incudes one-time expense of Rs 63.74 crore towards increasing gratuity liability and liability towards compensated absences due the new labour law. It also includes impairment loss of Rs 93.87 crore on 'intangibles', recognised on acquisition of Obgenix Software Pvt.
Revenue advanced by 3.7% year-on-year for the three months ended December, reaching Rs 8,867 crore. Operating income, or earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortization rose 8.8% year-on-year to Rs 1,781 crore. The Ebitda margin expanded to 20.1%.
According to the company, decorative business delivered strong volume growth of 7.9% despite shorter festive period and extended monsoon. The value growth stood at 2.8%.
The industrial segment that was aided by overall coatings performance with volume growth of 8.3% and value growth of 4.4%. The net sales of the international business rose by 6.3% in rupee terms and 4.2% in constant currency with significant improvement in profitability.
"Our industrial coatings segment registered good double-digit growth, boosting our overall coatings performance. In the same league, our international business achieved a 6.3% revenue increase led by steady performance in key markets of UAE, Sri Lanka and Ethiopia," said Amit Syngle, Managing Director & CEO of Asian Paints.
Asian Paints Share Price Today
The scrip fell as much as 5.86% to Rs 2,546 apiece on Tuesday, lowest level since Nov. 4. It pared losses to trade 2.5% lower at Rs 2,632.10 apiece, as of 2:41 p.m. This compares to a 0.18% advance in the NSE Nifty 50 Index.
It has fallen 17.05% in the last 12 months and 4.94% year-to-date. Total traded volume so far in the day stood at 2.49 times its 30-day average. The relative strength index was at 50.48.
Out of 38 analysts tracking the company, 16 maintain a 'buy' rating, six recommend a 'hold,' and 16 suggest 'sell,' according to Bloomberg data. The average 12-month consensus price target stands at Rs 2,839.05 indicating an upside of 9%.
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