Hawkins Cooker (508486) Q4 98/99 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY1998-99 total income was Rs1,142.1m, up 6.5% YoY; net profit after tax was Rs40.1m, up 1.5% YoY, in the 40th year of operations.

• Unaudited results for the quarter ended June 30, 1999 showed a Rs24.56m net loss as net sales fell 22% YoY; the decline was attributed to market conditions expected to be temporary.

Financial highlights

• Sales were Rs1,136.4m versus Rs1,068.3m; profit before tax was Rs51.59m versus Rs51.56m; tax provision was Rs11.45m versus Rs12.0m.

• Net profit was Rs40.14m versus Rs39.56m; cash generated from operations was Rs87.28m versus Rs14.65m, with net operating cash flow of Rs49.38m versus an outflow of Rs28.51m.

• Research and development spend was Rs17.6m, 1.5% of turnover, versus Rs12.3m and 1.1% in the prior year.

Outlook and guidance

• Management expected the June-quarter sales decline to be temporary and anticipated a good result for FY1999-2000, barring unforeseen circumstances.

• Pressure-cooker export volume in Q1 FY1999-2000 was 49% above Q1 FY1998-99 after difficult global trading conditions in the prior year.