Wheels India net profit goes up by 23 per cent in FY18 to Rs 71.8 cr

Revenues (net of Excise Duty) for the year ended FY18 went up 14% to Rs 2469.5 cr from Rs 2176.1 cr in FY17, driven largely by a demand uptake in the CVs and passenger car segments and a recovery in the overseas markets for its business segments in the second half of the year. The Board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 9 per share. 

Net Profit for Q4 ended March 31, 2018 rose to Rs 19.5 crores from Rs 17.3 cr in Q4 ended March 31, 2017. Q4 for March 31, 2018 revenues went up 26.6% to Rs 705 cr from Rs 557.7cr (net of Excise Duty) registered in the same period of the previous year. There are signs of recovery in the cyclical user segments that constitute the bulk of the company’s exports. The company exports wheels for off-road (construction, mining and agricultural) equipment to US, Japan, UK, South Korea and Brazil. In the last financial year, Wheels India exported 16 per cent of its sales turnover.

Srivats Ram, MD, Wheels India said, “The slump sale of our passenger car business also contributed to the growth in Net Profit in 2017-18. We expect the strong growth in domestic sales to continue this year. The export business is also likely to grow at a faster pace in the coming year. The domestic demand is driven by replacement demand in the CV market, government infrastructural initiatives and pro-agri policies,” noting that ramping up to meet the demand and overcoming industrial inflation were the key challenges.