Mahanagar Gas Q4 Results: Profit Meets Estimates

Mahanagar Gas Ltd.'s standalone net profit rose 12% in the quarter ended March on a sequential basis, meeting analysts' estimates.

The company posted a bottom line of Rs 252.2 crore during the January–March period of the last financial year, according to an exchange filing on Tuesday. Analysts tracked by Bloomberg had a consensus estimate of Rs 245.1 crore.

• Revenue up 5.7% to Rs 1,864.9 crore versus Rs 1,757.6 crore (Bloomberg estimate: Rs 1,803 crore).

• Ebitda up 20% to Rs 378.4 crore versus Rs 314.5 crore (Estimate: Rs 353 crore).

• Margin expands to 20.3% versus 17.9% (Estimate: at 19.6%).

• Net profit up 12% to Rs 252.2 crore versus Rs 225.4 crore (Estimate: Rs 245.1 crore).

The board of MGL recommended a final dividend of Rs 18 per share at a face value of Rs 10 each for the financial year ended March 31. This is in addition to the earlier dividend of Rs 12 per share. In total, the dividend for the fiscal stands at Rs 30 per share.

The proposed final dividend will be approved in the upcoming annual general meeting and if approved, then the company will pay out about Rs 177.8 crore.

Revenue from compressed natural gas, excluding excise duty, has risen 6.77% to Rs 1,306.8 crore. Piped natural gas has seen a 4.37% increase, reaching Rs 546.9 crore.

Revenue from liquefied natural gas stands at Rs 2.79 crore, compared to Rs 2.53 crore previously.

Shares of MGL closed 1.97% lower at Rs 1,376.9 apiece on the NSE, compared to a 0.33% rise in the benchmark Nifty. The stock has fallen 2.55% in the last 12 months but risen 7.2% on a year-to-date basis.

Out of the 32 analysts tracking the company, 21 have a 'buy' rating on the stock, four suggest 'hold' and seven recommend 'sell', according to Bloomberg data. The average of 12-month analysts' price target implies a potential upside of 10.4%.