A Birla Chemicals

Aditya Birla Chemicals (India) had tanked big time after it posted a set of extremely disappointing performance for Q4FY14 where due to higher tax outgo and operating costs, its net profit was seriously dented. It ended the quarter with a whopping 90% (YoY) drop in net profit at Rs.74 lakh though net sales had risen by a healthy 63% at Rs.272 crore. Sequentially, the drop in net profit is even more drastic at 95%.

Its tax out for the quarter was at Rs.14 crore, up from Rs.2 crore in Q4FY13 and Rs.8 crore in Q3. This surge in tax was because the company has discontinued the recognition of MAT Credit entitlement and it also includes, apart from wealth tax, deferred tax of Rs.21 crore. Another serious bottom line buster was operating costs, which rose 34% (YoY). The only saving grace is that the company ended the fiscal FY14, thanks to previous three quarters on a much better note, with a net profit of Rs.50 crore, which is 150% higher than FY13.

The company is a leading caustic soda player in Eastern India and has a 30 MW captive power plant and has also converted to mercury cell technology. Currently, the installed capacity stands at 105,000 tpa.