BENGALURU (Reuters) – India’s Pidilite Industries, which makes Fevicol adhesives and Dr. Fixit waterproofing products, posted a 6.2% jump in fourth-quarter profit on Tuesday, driven by lower input costs.
A healthy real estate sector and rising infrastructure creation are driving demand for construction chemical makers like Pidilite.
The company’s consolidated net profit rose to 3.01 billion rupees ($36.07 million) in the quarter ending March 31, which is traditionally its weakest quarter, from 2.83 billion rupees a year earlier.
Its revenue increased 7.9% to 29.02 billion rupees, marking the sixth consecutive quarter of single-digit percentage growth.
Prices of vinyl acetate monomer, a key raw material for adhesives, have fallen steeply since last year, helping bring down the company’s cost of materials consumed by 6.8% in the fourth quarter.
Sales rose 6.4% in its consumer and bazaar business segment, which houses the Fevicol and Dr. Fixit brands, and accounts for over 75% of the total revenue.
“While there may be short term softness in the environment in near term, we continue to remain optimistic about market demand in the medium term, with overall increase in construction activities, government spending,” Pidilite Industries Managing Director Bharat Puri said in a statement.
The company’s shares closed down 0.1% ahead of results.
($1 = 83.4593 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Yagnoseni Das, Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)
