Bajaj Auto Ltd.'s profit rose in the third quarter of fiscal 2024 on higher sales.
The company's net profit rose 37% to Rs 2,042 crore in the quarter ended December, according to an exchange filing on Wednesday. That compares with the Rs 1,932-crore consensus forecast of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.
Bajaj Auto Q3 FY24 Highlights (YoY)
Revenue rose 30% to Rs 12,113.5 crore (Bloomberg estimate: Rs 11,777 crore).
Ebitda grew 37% to Rs 2,430 crore (Bloomberg estimate: Rs 2,285 crore).
Operating margin stood at 20.05% versus 19.07% (Bloomberg estimate: 19.4%).
Higher two-wheeler sales in the domestic market driven by the festival season cushioned the subdued exports, the company said in a release.
Bajaj Auto's two-wheeler sales rose 22% year-on-year to 10.4 lakh units in the quarter. Domestic sales increased 44%, while exports fell 3%.
Even in the three-wheeler business, the sales were driven by the domestic demand. The total three-wheeler sales rose 22% to 1.61 lakh units led by domestic sales, which surged 38% in the quarter. Exports fell 12% in the same period.
Bajaj Auto may look at scaling up the network earlier than previously planned due to the rising popularity of electric three-wheelers, the company said.
A bigger scale of operations and increase in average selling prices led to the 100 basis points expansion in the operating margin. This is despite the pressure on margins amid growing scale of electric scooters, where the margin is still on the lower side.
Shares of Bajaj Auto ended 1.55% higher at Rs 7,205.75 apiece before the results were announced, as against a 1% rise in the benchmark Nifty 50.