Maruti Suzuki Q3 Results: Net Profit Rises 24% On Higher Sales

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. saw its quarterly profit and revenue rise as festive push and preference for personal mobility amid the pandemic aided demand for its small cars.

Net profit of India’s largest carmaker rose 24% year-on-year to Rs 1,941 crore in the three months ended December, according to an exchange filing. That compares with the Rs 1,859-crore consensus estimate of analysts tracked by Bloomberg.

Maruti Suzuki Q3 earnings 2020-21: Key highlights (year-on-year)

• Revenue rose 13% to Rs 23,458 crore, compared with the Rs 20,706-crore estimate.
• Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation increased 6% to Rs 2,227 crore.
• Ebitda margin contracted to 9.5% from 10.2%. Analysts had pegged the metric at 10.8%.

Maruti Suzuki, in the filing, said its operating income rose on higher sales volume, cost cuts and lower sales promotion. But the increase was partially offset by an increase in commodity prices and adverse foreign exchange movement.

The company sold 4.95 lakh units in the quarter ended December, up 13.4% from the year-ago period. This comes as automakers, grappling with a prolonged slowdown before the pandemic, ramped up production during the festive season to make up for the washout in the initial months of the lockdown. Also, Maruti Suzuki’s decision to hike prices from January may have prompted pre-buying in December—a month when consumers usually stay away from purchasing new vehicles as new year’s registration date offers a better resale value.

Still, shares of Maruti Suzuki fell 1.9% after the results were announced compared with a 1.24% drop in the benchmark Nifty 50.