Bharat Forge shares hit 10% upper circuit after strong Q4 earnings

Shares of auto components major Bharat Forge Limited hit upper circuit on Wednesday after the company announced its financial results for the quarter ended on March 31, 2024.

At 3:00 pm, the stock was locked in upper circuit at ₹1,363, up 10%, on the National Stock Exchange (NSE). On the BSE, it rose 10% to ₹1,362.2 apiece.

Bharat Forge reported a 77.8% surge in consolidated net profit in Q4 FY24. The company's net profit stood at ₹227.12 crore, up from ₹127.74 crore in the same period of the last fiscal year, according to a regulatory filing.

Consolidated revenue from operations grew to ₹4,164.21 crore in January-March quarter as against ₹3,629.05 crore in the year-ago period.

Total expenses in the fourth quarter were higher at ₹3,843.55 crore against ₹3,469.05 crore in the same period a year ago.

The company's board has also recommended a final dividend of ₹6.50 per share of ₹2 face value for the financial year ended in March, 2024, subject to approval of shareholders.

For FY24, consolidated net profit stood at ₹910.16 crore as against ₹508.39 crore in the previous fiscal. Consolidated revenue from operations in FY24 was recoded at ₹15,682.07 crore compared to ₹12,910.26 crore in FY23.

BN Kalyani, Chairman and Managing Director of BFL, said that the company ended the year on a strong note. "A key driver of the strong performance was the fulfilment of defence export orders won by KSSL (Kalyani Strategic Systems Ltd) and the continued strong ramp-up of exports business across all business segments, except oil & gas," he added.

In FY24, the Indian operations have secured new orders worth ₹1,350 crore across automotive and industrial applications. This includes a healthy mix of existing and new customers across traditional and new products, Kalyani said.

In the automotive business, Bharat Forge said FY24 was a year of consolidation for the MHCV (medium and heavy commercial vehicle) industry in India after two years of spectacular growth and the company too saw mild revenue accretion in its CV (commercial vehicles) business.

Stating that it continues to aim for growth which is in-line with the market, BFL said, "The market is likely to see more activity as the election process concludes and capex spend accelerates."

CV export business remained steady in FY24 with revenue up 8.5% year-on-year (YoY). Order backlog, inventory and cancellation rates remain at reasonable levels, BFL said.

On the other hand, the domestic industrial segment saw revenue rise 72% in FY24. The sharp rise was driven by the supply of components and products for defence applications, it added.