Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL) has reported a standalone net profit of ₹1,796 crore for the fourth quarter ended March 31, lower by around 5 per cent compared with ₹1,882 crore in the same period of the previous year.
This quarter under review was marked by adverse foreign exchange rates and commodity prices, higher depreciation and higher sales promotion expenses which were partially offset by cost reduction efforts, the company said on Thursday.
Net sales, however, rose marginally year-on-year (YoY) to ₹20,737 crore compared with ₹20,594 crore in the same period in the previous year. The company sold a total of 4,58,479 vehicles during the January-March quarter, a marginal decline from 4,61,773 units sold in the comparable period.
“Three major factors — foreign exchange, commodity prices and discounts on products — are the main factors for the negative impact on the financials,” Ajay Seth, Chief Financial Officer, MSIL, told reporters here.
He said the company will cut costs in different part of its operations to stabilise the operating margins in the ongoing financial year. On the discounts, he said they are gone up to an average of ₹15,125 during the quarter as compared with ₹13,879 in the corresponding period last year.
For the full year, the company reported a net profit of ₹7,500.6 crore, which was down by three per cent from the previous fiscal, which was recorded the highest at ₹7,722 crore. Net sales for last fiscal stood at ₹83,026.5 crore (₹78,105 crore).
The company, as on March 31, had a cash flow of ₹34,00 crore, Seth added.
The board of directors, meanwhile, recommended a dividend of ₹80 per share of face value ₹5 for 2018-19, the same as last year, the company added.
Shares of Maruti Suzuki India closed at ₹6,902.95 on the BSE on Thursday, down by 2 per cent from the previous close.