Other income rose to Rs 52 lakh compared to Rs 47 lakh. Interest cost was down 39% to Rs 8.05 crore. Depreciation rose 5% to Rs 21.81 crore. PBT was up 46% to Rs 61.98 crore. 

Effective rate of taxes was up 200 bps to 35%. PAT reported was up 42% to Rs 40.28 crore. 

Segment wise, Pharmaceutical Segment revenue stood at Rs 269 crore, up by 8% YoY and accounted for 58% of sales. PBIT from the same was up by 16% to Rs 47.68 crore and accounted for 61% of total PBIT with PBIT margin at 17.7% as compared to 16.5% for Dec19 quarter. Continued customer demand provides a positive outlook on the business. The company has strong pipeline of new products in Contract Manufacturing and Generics and business excellence initiatives yielded better utilization of production capacities. 

For the quarter, sales from the Crop Protection Segment stood at Rs 194.29 crore up by 25% YoY and accounted for 42% of sales. PBIT from the same was up 30% to Rs 30.83 crore and accounted for 39% of total PBIT. PBIT margins stood at 15.9% as compared to 15.2% for Dec19 quarter. The company has strong pipeline of inquiries and new products under commercialization while business excellence initiatives driving better throughput

Commenting on the results, Jai Hiremath, Chairman & Managing Director, Hikal Ltd. said, "I am pleased to report that we have achieved the highest ever quarterly revenue and net profit as a company. After facing several challenges through the pandemic both our businesses are now back on track. 

The Crop Protection business has grown significantly by 25% for the quarter on the growth of new products and higher volumes of existing products. We have a healthy pipeline of new projects in the business and expect to commercialize several products soon. 

Our Pharmaceutical division sales were up by 8% for the quarter as compared to the same period last year. Both our generics and contract manufacturing businesses continue to do well as we expand our product portfolio and geographic diversification. We have received several new inquiries from global customers looking to diversify their supply chain and are confident that the division will continue to do well over the next several quarters.

 Our EBITDA margins improved significantly in the quarter as several of our business excellence initiatives have started yielding results. We continue to generate positive free cash flows as a result of increased sales and margins. We expect to continue this momentum as we go forward. Our capex plans are on track and we are expediting the execution to meet the increased demand of our customers. 

ICRA has reinforced the Credit Rating of the company at "A", indicating improvement in the overall business and strong cash flows. We have reduced our total borrowing costs and we expect to further reduce the overall interest rates in the quarters to come. 

We see significant tailwinds in both our businesses and are confident that growth momentum will continue throughout this year into the next year for both our divisions." 

Performance for the nine months ended Dec20 

For nine months ended Dec20, net sales rose 5% to Rs 1187.98 crore. The company operating margins rose 60 bps to 18.5%. As a result operating profits increased 8% to Rs 219.53 crore.  

Other income rose 7% to Rs 2.11 crore. Interest cost was down 32% to Rs 26.23 crore. Depreciation rose 4% to Rs 63.69 crore. PBT before EO was up 26% to Rs 131.72 crore. The company had EO expense of Rs 5.9 crore compared (EO expense was related to Covid expenses incurred during pandemic - Rs 3 crore paid to employees as ex-gratia in addition to normal compensation and Rs 3.7 crore of other expenses which includes Rs 1 crore of additional CSR expenditure) compared to Rs 15.4 crore in the corresponding previous year period (Exceptional item during the current period comprises customs duty Rs. 13.39 crore on past imports of raw materials at an Export Oriented Unit of the Holding Company and interest of Rs. 2.01 crore thereon, paid during the quarter on directions of the Customs authority). PBT after EO was up 42% to Rs 125.82 crore. 

Effective tax rate was up 200 bps to 35%. PAT reported was up 37% to Rs 82.23 crore. 

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