JSW Steel today reported a sharp 61.56 per cent decline in consolidated net profit at Rs 265.91 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 2013 due to a decline in sales, higher depreciation and increased interest outgo.
The company, headed by Sajjan Jindal, had reported a net profit of Rs 769.73 crore during the corresponding quarter of 2011-12.
JSW’s standalone net profit also declined by nearly 24 per cent at Rs 573.23 crore during the last quarter vis-a-vis Rs 752.18 crore in Q4 of FY’12, it said in a filing to BSE.
“The (consolidated) net profit was lower by 62 per cent on account of higher interest and depreciation in the standalone company and the tax provision has increased as the surcharge was increased from 5 to 10 per cent in Union Budget 2013-14,” JSW said in a separate statement.
According to the company, JSW’s depreciation charges (at Rs 523.43 crore) as a standalone firm rose by nearly 11 per cent, while its interest outgo increased by over 20 per cent at Rs 442.50 crore during the last quarter.
On a consolidated basis, its net sales declined by nearly 3 per cent to Rs 9,851.54 crore in the last quarter as compared to net sales of Rs 10,152.68 crore in Q4 of FY’12.
Besides, its total expenditure at Rs 8,759.67 crore accounted for 87.53 per cent of net sales.
For the full year ended March 31, 2013, JSW reported an over 79 per cent decline in its consolidated net profit at Rs 963.11 crore due to a host of reasons, including higher depreciation, increased interest outgo and tax payments.
“In spite of paying higher prices in the e-auctions for iron ore, that too for inferior quality, the company could report improved financial performance due to sourcing efficiency in coal, optimising blend of coal for coke-making, and increased waste heat utilisation in various process units across plants,” JSW said.
According to the company, it sold 8.87 million tonnes of steel in the last fiscal, achieving 14 per cent growth. Its production also increased by 15 per cent at 8.52 MT in the last fiscal.
For the current fiscal, JSW is aiming to produce 9 per cent more steel at 9.25 mt and is looking to increase its steel sales by 10 per cent at 9.75 mt.
Shares of the company were up marginally at Rs 685.35 apiece on the BSE in late afternoon trade.