GMR posts net profit after two successive years of losses
The March quarter profit of `579.17 crore follows nine successive quarters of losses
Bangalore:GMR Infrastructure Ltd swung to a net profit of ₹ 579.17 crore in the fourth quarter ended March from a net loss of ₹ 366.16 crore in the year-ago period.
The company made a full-year net profit of ₹ 88.12 crore after two successive years of losses.
Annual net sales rose to ₹ 9,871.87 crore from ₹ 8,320.11 crore.
The March quarter profit follows nine successive quarters of losses and being removed as the operator of the Male airport late last year. It had last posted a profit in the September 2010 quarter. In the December 2012 quarter, the firm posted a ₹ 217.41 crore loss.
The company’s operations include airports in Delhi and Hyderabad, 10 highway projects and 16 power projects.
It terminated a highway project in January after the National Highways Authority of India, the agency tasked with implementing highway projects in the country, was unable to obtain clearances in time, leading to cost escalations, GMR said.
The company also took a year-long investment holiday, during which it didn’t bid for new projects.
The company’s airport division started posting profits after the Airports Economic Regulatory Authority of India (Aera) allowed a 346% increase in airport tariffs starting 15 May last year.
GMR Infra ended at ₹ 20.85 on BSE, up 2%, while the benchmark Sensex fell 2.25% to 19,760.30 points.
With new assets coming on stream, things are looking better for the company, said Rupa Shah, research analyst, institutional equities, Prabhudas Lilladher Pvt. Ltd.
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