India Cements share price falls after coronavirus hits Q4 earnings

Share price of India Cements fell for the second consecutive session today after the South India-based cement maker  reported net loss of Rs 11.76 crore in Q4 against profit of Rs 32.57 crore (YoY). India Cements share price declined 2.4% to Rs 123.9 today against previous close of Rs 126.95 on BSE.

The stock has fallen 5.32% in two days. The share trades higher than 50 day, 100 day and 200 day moving averages but lower than 5 day and 20 day moving averages. The  small cap stock has gained 17.68% in one year and risen 73.88% since the beginning of this year.

Total 3.40 lakh shares changed hands amounting to turnover of Rs 4.27 crore. The share hit its 52 week high of Rs 140 on May 26, 2020 and 52 week low of Rs 67.90 on August 23, 2019. Market cap of the firm stood at Rs 3,889 crore on BSE.

"The spread of novel coronavirus disease has severely impacted businesses in India and abroad. The regular business operations have been disrupted severely due to lockdowns, restrictions in transportation, supply chain disruptions, travel bans, social distancing and other emergency measures. The pandemic situation has affected the normal business operations of the company and production, sales and profitability," India Cements said.

In Q4 sales, fell 26.3% to Rs 1,151.9 crore against Rs 1,564 crore in corresponding quarter of 2018-19. EBIDTA in Q4 fell 65% to Rs 67.5 crore against Rs 192.2 crore EBITDA in Q4 of 2018-19.

On an annual basis, India Cements reported consolidated net profit of Rs 53.46 crore in FY20 against Rs 25.26 crore in the previous fiscal. Total income stood at Rs 5,223.12 crore in fiscal year 2019-20 compared to Rs 5,809.6 crore in the last fiscal. The company board also recommended a dividend of Rs 0.60 per share for FY20. India Cements' net loss in Q4FY20 came at Rs 11.76 crore against profit of Rs 32.57 crore (YoY).

The company incurred a one-time loss of Rs 100 crore owing to coronavirus uncertainty in the quarter under review. Total income stood at Rs 1,198.1 crore against Rs 1,623 crore in FY19. 

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The management said  that  there  has  not  been  any discussion with  Radhakishan Damani on his stake in the company. There is nothing more to share at this stage, as per the management.

The clarification comes after reports on June 17 said Damani was planning to buy a controlling stake in the company. Damani held 10.29 percent stake in the cement maker, while his brother Gopikishan Shivkishan Damani had 8.26 percent and the rest 1.34 percent was held by both together, as per the shareholding pattern at the end of quarter ended March 2020.

According to a Bloomberg report, Damani made an informal contact with N. Srinivasan, the controlling shareholder of India Cements, to explore a takeover opportunity.

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