BENGALURU :
Macrotech Developers Ltd, that operates under the Lodha brand, on Tuesday reported a 24% jump in net profit to ₹286.38 crore in the December-ended quarter, compared to the corresponding year-ago period, on the back of good residential sales.
The Mumbai-based developer also saw its revenue rise to ₹2148.74 crore in the third quarter from ₹1599.77 crore during the same period.
“The housing market has seen a remarkable turnaround in last 12months. The fact that this strong performance comes on the back of an equally strong base of the previous quarter as well as the same quarter in FY 21 showcases that the recovery in the housing market has taken root and the multi-year up-cycle in housing market is well underway. We are witnessing strong demand across our portfolio and at all price points," said Abhishek Lodha, MD and CEO, Macrotech Developers.
The firm recently completed its maiden qualified institutional placement (QIP) offering and raised ₹4,000 crore from global and Indian institutional investors. During the quarter, the company signed on 6 more joint development agreements (JDA) of 4.8 million sq ft. Since its public listing in April 2021, Macrotech has added 11 JDA projects totaling around 8.8 million sq ft.
Macrotech said its UK business has performed ahead of expectations, and the $225 million bond will be pre-paid in the near future from the sales at its ‘One Grosvenor Square’ development, ahead of the bond maturity.
During the December quarter, net debt for its India business came down to ₹9,896 crore thereby achieving the full-year debt reduction guidance for FY22. It has also brought down interest costs, with the average cost reducing from 12.3% in March 21 to 11.1% in December.
“…On the supply side, consolidation is accelerating at a great pace creating a goldilocks situation for strong brands like us. The accelerating consolidation in the market has presented to us several lucrative opportunities to add new projects across MMR and Pune through the capital light JDA route. We are focused on this capital light growth model -delivering scale with a prudent balance sheet. Strong
operating performance and robust free cash flow will enable us to continue our de-leveraging journey," Lodha added.
