Apollo Tyres (APOLLOTYRE) Q4 98/99 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY ended Mar. 31, 1999 revenue was ₹1,154.02 crore, down from ₹1,369.24 crore; a 100-day Perambra lockout and recessionary demand weighed on sales and profitability.

• Operating profit before depreciation and tax was ₹75.32 crore; PAT was ₹40.02 crore, while net profit after ₹8.94 crore of prior-period expenses was ₹31.08 crore.

Financial highlights

• Sales were ₹1,151.16 crore and other income ₹2.86 crore, versus ₹1,365.19 crore and ₹4.05 crore in FY98.

• PBT was ₹51.86 crore versus ₹61.87 crore; depreciation was ₹23.46 crore and tax provision ₹11.84 crore.

• Net profit was ₹31.08 crore versus ₹40.68 crore; the current-year result included ₹8.94 crore of net prior-period expenses, including tax settlement items.

• Net cash from operating activities increased to ₹76.41 crore from ₹36.98 crore; cash and bank balances were ₹57.37 crore at year-end.

Outlook and guidance

• Limda expansion for bias truck and rear tractor tyres, plus passenger radial capacity of 2,000 tyres/day, was budgeted at ~₹94 crore, funded by debenture proceeds and internal accruals.

• A Baroda passenger radial facility was slated to reach full production by July 1999; experimental truck, bus and LCV radials remained under development and testing.

• Year 2000 remediation was targeted for completion by Sept. 30, 1999, at estimated cost of ~₹5 crore, including hardware replacement.