ACC profit down 40.5% to Rs 270.95 cr in Apr-Jun, sales decline 37.2%

ACC’s total expenses were at Rs 2,252.62 crore, down 36.25 per cent, as against Rs 3,533.55 crore in the year-ago period. ACC’s cement volume was down 34.16 per cent to 4.76 MT (million tonnes) in the April-June quarter as against 7.23 MT of the corresponding quarter.

Cement maker ACC Ltd on Monday reported a 40.53 per cent decline in consolidated net profit to Rs 270.95 crore for the quarter ended on June 30, 2020, adversely impacted by COVID-19-related disturbances in the market. The company, which follows January-December financial year, had posted a profit of Rs 455.68 crore in the same quarter a year ago, ACC said in a BSE filing.

Its total revenue from operations was down 37.29 per cent to Rs 2,602.24 crore during the quarter under review as against Rs 4,149.82 crore in the year-ago period. Commenting on the performance ACC Managing Director & CEO Sridhar Balakrishnan said: ”The COVID-19 situation and consequential lockdown restrictions have adversely impacted our performance for this quarter. The month of April 2020 was almost a total closure impacting revenue & EBITDA for the quarter with strong recovery in May & June.” The company witnessed significant volume impact during the second quarter of 2020 as a result of COVID-19 situation and lockdowns. ACC’s total expenses were at Rs 2,252.62 crore, down 36.25 per cent, as against Rs 3,533.55 crore in the year-ago period.

ACC’s cement volume was down 34.16 per cent to 4.76 MT (million tonnes) in the April-June quarter as against 7.23 MT of the corresponding quarter. Its revenue from cement was down 33.59 per cent to Rs 2,550.99 crore as against Rs 3,841.39 crore of the corresponding quarter. Ready Mix Concrete was down 82.87 per cent to Rs 62.63 crore as against Rs 365.82 crore in the tear-ago period. Over the outlook, the company said despite the uncertainty surrounding COVID-19 and lockdown restrictions, it expects the cement sector to return to growth trajectory. "The Company believes that our country with its strong record of growth and sound economic policies will rebound on its growth trajectory.The recent initiatives by the Government will help resurgence of rural demand including affordable housing.This coupled with the Government impetus on infrastructure will play a strong role in driving cement demand,” said Balakrishnan. Shares of ACC Ltd on Monday settled at Rs 1,330.05 on BSE, up 1.09 per cent from BSE.