PI Industries posts 12% drop in Q4 net profit; sees no major COVID-19 impact

Pesticides and agrochemicals maker PI Industries on Friday reported a 12 per cent fall in its consolidated net profit at Rs 110.7 crore for the fourth quarter of the 2019-20 fiscal on higher expenses, and said there won’t be any major impact of COVID-19 pandemic on its business. The firm’s net profit stood at Rs 125.7 crore in the same quarter of the 2018-29 fiscal, according to a regulatory filing.

Its net income rose to Rs 862 crore during the quarter ended March 31 of this fiscal from Rs 826.9 crore a year ago.

However, expenses remained higher at Rs 720.9 crore as against Rs 656.8 crore in the year-ago period. For the full 2019-20 fiscal year, the company reported an increase in its consolidated net profit to Rs 456.6 crore from Rs 410.2 crore in the previous year.

The consolidated annual income rose to RS 3,415.4 crore from Rs 2,900.4 crore in the 2018-19 fiscal. According to the filing, the group’s operations were disrupted at research and development (R&D) facilities at Udaipur, manufacturing facilities at Gujarat and sales depots across the country following the nationwide lockdown announced in March to prevent the spread of COVID-19.

This resulted in partial deferment of the group’s domestic and export revenues for March to the next quarter, the company said. However, since April, the group has resumed operations at its various sites in a gradual manner and the management believes that being into an essential commodity, there is no significant impact of COVID-19 pandemic on the current and future business conditions. The management also concluded that no material adjustments were required in the financial statements and it will continue to closely monitor the situation, the filing added.