Voltas Q4 Consolidated Net Profit Falls 21.6 Per Cent To Rs 143 crore

Air conditioning maker Voltas Ltd on Wednesday reported a decline of 21.6 per cent in its consolidated net profit to Rs 143.23 crore in the March 2023 quarter, due to provisions made on delayed collection in the international project business. The Tata group firm had posted a consolidated net profit of Rs 182.71 crore in the year-ago period, the company said in a regulatory filing. Revenue from operations of Voltas was up 11.5 per cent to Rs 2,936.76 crore during the period under review as against Rs 2,633.72 crore a year ago.

"Profit before and after taxes was impacted during the current quarter due to provisions made on delayed collection in the international project business," Voltas said in its earnings statement. During the March quarter, Voltas' total income was up 11.08 per cent to Rs 3,003.46 crore. Total expenses were at Rs 2,761.45 crore, up 13.75 per cent, in Q4FY23. Voltas' revenue from "unitary cooling products for comfort and commercial use" in the fourth quarter of FY23 was at Rs 2,048.62 crore, up 12.65 per cent, from Rs 1,818.41 crore of the corresponding quarter.

"The Unitary Cooling Products business has relatively performed better amid the lower consumer sentiment towards discretionary spend and incessant rains in March 2023," it said. Revenue from "electro-mechanical projects and services" in the March quarter was up 7.8 per cent at Rs 745.79 crore as against Rs 691.81 crore. Similarly, its "engineering products and services" revenue was 15.26 per cent higher at Rs 142.35 crore in the January-March quarter.

The same stood at Rs 123.50 crore in the year-ago period. Meanwhile, Volta's consolidated net profit was down 73.07 per cent to Rs 136.22 crore for the fiscal year which ended on March 2023. It had reported a net profit of Rs 506 crore in FY22. This was mainly on account of exceptional items, where it had made a provision of Rs 244 crore due to the termination of contracts and encashment of bank guarantees for two overseas projects -- in Dubai and Qatar, respectively.

However, its revenue from operation was up 19.87 per cent at Rs 9,399.37 crore in FY 2022-23. It was Rs 7,841.07 crore in FY22. In a separate filing, Voltas said its board on Wednesday has recommended a dividend of Rs 4.25 per share on face value of Re 1 per share for the year 2022-23. Shares of Voltas Ltd on Wednesday settled 1.36 per cent up at Rs 855.05 apiece on the BSE.

(PTI)