BASF India

The stock closed in the red yesterday, down almost 6%  and that was after hitting a new 52-week high at Rs.1497.60. The high was on expectation of good numbers and the slump was after the numbers actually came in.  For the third quarter ended 31st Dec 2014, the company ended with a net loss of Rs.39 crore, much higher than the loss of Rs.20 crore in Q2 and a pitiable profit of Rs.1 crore in Q3FY14. The topline rose 4% at Rs.975 but the 7% higher operating costs and interest cost jumping up over 4 times (YoY) from Rs.5 crore to Rs.27 crore pushed the company into the red. During the quarter, the company commissioned some plants at Dahej, due to which there was a rise in depreciation, interest, pre-commissioning marketing costs and overall operating expenses.

During the quarter, the company sold its non-residential property and realized a gain of Rs.16 crore and even that did not help the company turnaround – it only helped bring down the loss from Rs.55 crore to Rs.30 crore.  In terms of its segments, Chemicals and Functional Materials and Solution posted loss at EBIT level. Its net loss at end of 9MFY15 stands at Rs.7 crore compared to profit of Rs.128 crore in FY14. Current fiscal holds the promise of being stressful.