Maruti Q4 Results: Profit surges 42%, Rs 90 per share dividend declared

The biggest carmaker of India, Maruti came out with its results for the Jan - Mar ‘23 period recently. The numbers were a mixed bag with profits surpassing but revenues missing estimates.

The company reported revenues of Rs 32,060 crores for the March quarter, below the analyst expectations of Rs 32,529 crores. However, the profit figure of Rs 2,671 crores came in above the consensus estimate of Rs 2,502 crores.

In terms of share price performance, the Maruti share price has shown muted growth in 2023 so far. The Maruti share price is up almost 1% in 2023 so far while over the past year, it has increased by roughly 9%.

So, how was Maruti’s showing for the Jan - Mar ‘23 period in other key parameters like vehicle sales, operating profits, etc? What was the Maruti dividend? Let’s find all this and more!

Decoding Maruti Q4 Earnings

Maruti revenues:

• Maruti reported revenues of Rs 32,060 crores in the Jan - Mar ‘23 period, up 19.9% from the previous year.
   
• The management cited better sales volume, cost reduction efforts and favorable foreign exchange rates as the primary factors which drove sales higher.
   
• However, higher promotional expenses hurt sales growth.

Maruti Profits: Maruti’s consolidated profits for the Jan - Mar ‘23 period came in at Rs 2,671 crores. This denotes a growth of 42.4% from the previous year.

Better expenses management and higher sales growth in terms of volumes drove the net profits higher.

Maruti vehicle sales: 

• Maruti sold a total of 5,14,927 vehicles in the March quarter, clocking a growth of 5.3% from the prior year.
   
• Domestic vehicle sales for the Jan - Mar ‘23 period came in at 4,50,208 units, denoting a growth of 7.1% from the prior year. Compact car sales drove the bulk of the domestic vehicle sales, cornering a share of 50% or 2,25,570 units. This is followed by utility vehicles (24% or 1,05,957 units)  and Mini cars (13% or 58,903 units).
   
• However, exports witnessed a drop of 5.5% from the previous year to 64,719 units.

Maruti operating margins: Maruti’s operating margins for the Jan - Mar ‘23 period came in at 8.5%, improving by 21.4% from the previous year.

Maruti dividend: Maruti declared a dividend of Rs 90 per share.

Maruti earnings: Analyst target price

Jefferies: The renowned global brokerage has a “Buy” rating on the stock with a price target of Rs 11,000. The firm highlighted the auto major's robust volumes growth as the factor that drive its profitability and share price higher in the near term.

Kotak Institutional Equities: The top domestic brokerage has a “Sell” rating on the stock with a price target of Rs 7,850. The firm remains skeptical about the company's margin expansion in the near term. This can hurt the Maruti share price growth in the near term.

Emkay Global: The leading brokerage has a “Buy” rating on the stock with a price target of Rs 10,300. The firm cited the company's leadership position in the SUV segment as a key trigger which can drive the Maruti share price higher in the near term.

This is not investment advice. Investments in the securities market are subject to market risk, read all the related documents carefully before investing. Past performance is not indicative of future returns.