Shares of Apollo Tyres were locked in the 10 per cent upper circuit band at Rs 250, which was also its fresh 52-week high, on the BSE in the intra-day trade on Thursday after the company's consolidated net profit more-than-doubled to Rs 443.8 crore in December quarter (Q3FY21) on the back of healthy operational performance and other income. The auto tyres & rubber products company had clocked a profit of Rs 173.9 crore in Q3FY20 and had posted a net loss of Rs 246.20 crore in Q2FY21.
Total consolidated operating income rose 17.1 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 5,154 crore. The company attributed the robust topline performance to strong demand recovery across segments in India, which was driven by strong growth in both replacement and OEM segments.
"Consolidated margins were at a decade high 19.2 per cent, up 297 basis points (bps) quarter-on-quarter and 710 bps YoY. The margin performance was helped by recovery in topline, subdued raw material cost, and control over costs," the company said.
That apart, the tyre manufacturer generated free cash flow (consolidated) of Rs 1,200 crore during YTDFY21, helped by recovery in topline performance and control over costs, control over capex, and working capital optimization.
"The rise in costs of key inputs (natural rubber, crude derivatives) may reflect in January-March quarter (Q4FY21E) results with management commentary on Ebitda sustainability a key monitorable. We are enthused to note the reduction in consolidated net debt from Rs 6,000 crore as of FY20 to Rs 3,800 crore as of December 2020," ICICI Securities said in a note.
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