HCC
Hindustan Construction Company or HCC drew a big surprise on Friday. The stock had opened weak and even touched a new low at Rs.7.75 but then came its Q1Fy14 numbers and the stock hit the 20% circuit. The company after six consecutive quarters of loss, turned around with a net profit at Rs.19 crore in current Q1 compared to the net loss of Rs.50 crore in Q4 and loss of Rs.31 crore in Q1FY13. This turnaround was led by a very robust topline – net revenue rose 17% (QoQ) at Rs.1149 crore. More importantly, a very tight cost structure helped too, with total operating expenses as a percentage of net sales for Q1 was at 85% compared to 95% in Q4. EBITDA margin came in at 17.6%. Its interest outgo remains high and in current Q1 it was at Rs.149 crore compared to Rs.135 crore in Q4 and Rs.132 crore in previous Q1.
Lavasa is doing well with 110 residential units sold in Lavasa’s second town, Mugaon. It completed over 500 apartments and villas in its first town, Dasve. The company has stated that over 1.9 lakh tourists visited Lavasa during Q1 with average hotel occupancy reaching 70%. This turnaround in Lavasa is what has helped the company directly to bounce back. Its balance value of work on hand as at 30th June 2013, stood at Rs 13,969 crore, excluding contracts worth Rs 2,265 crore where it has emerged as the highest bidder.