Jaiprakash Associates 3Q net profit down 12%

Jaiprakash Associates' net profit fell by 12% to INR2.05bn (US$41.6m) in the third quarter of the current fiscal, mainly on higher interest outgoings.

The diversified company, having interest in cement, real estate, construction and power among others, had made INR2.33bn net profit during the October-December quarter of last fiscal, it said in a filing to the BSE today.

"The EBIDTA for the quarter is higher by INR860m over the corresponding quarter of previous year. However, due to higher incidence of interest and depreciation, the PBT and PAT are lower compared to the corresponding quarter of previous year," Jaiprakash Associates said.

The interest expenditure of the company rose to INR4.49bn during the quarter compared to INR3.38bn a year ago as a result of the tightening of the monetary policy by the Reserve Bank.

Total income of the company, however, rose to INR33.05bn against INR29.49bn a year ago, buoyed by good growth in sales from the cement and real estate businesses. The contribution of construction vertical to the topline, however, dipped marginally to INR12.42bn in the quarter compared to INR12.64bn a year earlier.