Ceat Q2 net profit dips 31 pc at Rs 44 cr

Tyre major Ceat on Tuesday reported a 30.81 percent decline in its consolidated net profit at Rs 43.64 crore for the second quarter ended September 30, hit by lower sales. The company had posted a net profit of Rs 63.08 crore during the same period of the previous fiscal.

Total income declined to Rs 1,695.80 crore for the July-September period as compared with Rs 1,775.53 crore in the same period of 2018-19, Ceat Ltd said in a regulatory filing. "It has been a challenging quarter in terms of top-line growth owing to a continued dip in consumer sentiment," Ceat Ltd MD Anant Goenka said.

However, the company's second-quarter Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation, and Amortization (EBITDA) and gross margins, have witnessed growth in comparison to the previous quarter thanks to an improved product portfolio, he added. Ceat CFO Kumar Subbiah said the tire maker's focus on the right product mix and tight cost management helped it to deliver improved margins during the quarter.

"We had one more quarter of cash flow management that helped us minimize the borrowings to fund our project capex," he added. Ceat shares on Tuesday ended 0.52 percent down at Rs 960.30 apiece on the BSE.