DLF’s net profit up 9% at Rs 452 crore

DLF on Friday reported a 9% y-o-y growth in its consolidated net profit for the October-December quarter at Rs 452 crore, helped by a demand revival in the residential segment. The real estate developer’s consolidated revenue rose 9% year-on-year to Rs 1,668 crore.

DLF said its rental arm, DLF Cyber City Developers (DCCDL) has engaged advisors for floating a REIT for its rental business and the process is likely to be completed in a year’s time. Demand in the residential business is improving, aided by a low-interest cost regime, various government incentive initiatives and quality supply with affordability, DLF said.

“During the quarter, we launched independent floors in DLF City, which was absorbed in record time, demonstrating demand for quality products in established locations. New sales bookings for the quarter rose to Rs 1,022 crore, reflecting a 40% growth y-o-y. We continue to step up on new launches and remain focused on creating a healthy pipeline of new products offering diversity across segments and geographies,” it added.

The December quarter closed with a positive cash flow of Rs 115 crore and net debt of the company reduced to Rs 5,100 crore. In regulatory filing, DLF said its CEO and whole time director, Rajeev Talwar will be stepping down from his role with effect from March 31, 2021.

DCCDL reported a consolidated revenue of Rs 1,122 crore in Q3 FY21 compared to Rs 1,131 crore a year ago. Ebitda stood at Rs 894 crore as compared to Rs 836 crore, implying a 7% Y-o-Y growth. Its net profit stood at Rs 249 crore.
The office business remains stable and continues to exhibit strong collections of 98%. The development of Downtown, at Gurgaon and Chennai as well as the Noida project remains on track.

The festive season added cheer to the retail segment with footfalls showing improvement. Overall, the retail business is recovering steadily, with the luxury segment-leading it. All our malls are witnessing increased footfalls and better spend per footfall, the company said.

“In our process for getting the rental business REIT ready, DCCDL has engaged advisors for its rental business and we are hopeful that the process is expected to be completed in the next 12 months,” it added.

With a sharp decline in Covid cases and improved economic activity, there is an improvement in business confidence in the realty sector and its allied industries,” said Ashok Tyagi, DLF’s whole time director.