Leading non-banking finance company (NBFC) Sundaram Finance’s subsidiaries in the mutual fund and general insurance businesses maintained their impressive performance in 2017-18, even as its housing finance business came under pressure.
The mutual fund arm, Sundaram Asset Management Company, posted a profit after tax (PAT) of ₹38.24 crore, compared to ₹30.73 crore in 2016-17. The average assets under management (AUM) amounted to ₹34,306 crore for FY18 (₹28,260 crore in FY17). The company recommended a dividend of 40 per cent (₹4 per share), according to the latest annual report of Sundaram Finance.
In FY18, Sundaram Mutual Fund schemes mobilised a sum of ₹22,915 crore, excluding liquid schemes, compared to ₹16,115 crore in FY17, posting an increase of 42 per cent.
Sundaram Mutual Fund launched 16 close-ended schemes, mobilising ₹1,374 crore in 2017-18. Most of the schemes registered good performance during the year beating their respective benchmarks.
For the year ended March 31, 2018, the company had a market share of 1.49 per cent, with a business of ₹34,164 crore.
FY18 was yet another strong year for the non-life insurance arm, Royal Sundaram General Insurance, which saw its PAT nearly doubling to ₹83 crore from ₹43 crore in FY17.
Its Gross Written Premium (GWP) grew by about 20 per cent at ₹2,643 crore (₹2,205 crore).
Sundaram Finance’s housing finance subsidiary, Sundaram BNP Paribas Home Finance, reported a PAT of ₹136 crore (₹154 crore in FY17.). Gross income was lower at ₹898.08 crore, compared to ₹922.85 crore in FY17.
Disbursements grew by 43 per cent at ₹2,626 crore (₹1,831 crore). The average size of home loans disbursed to individuals in FY18 was ₹27 lakh. It disbursed loans worth ₹1.5 crore to affordable housing finance companies through Line of Credit.
With improved buyer sentiment, controlled new launches, better sales, declining inventory of unsold units and consolidation, the company expects modest growth in 2018-19 with more stress on maintaining profitability .