Financial Performance For Q3FY13

• Central airconditioning and commercial refrigeration major Blue Star Limited reported Total Operating Income of Rs 598.80 crores for the quarter ended December 31, 2012, as compared to Rs 584.01 crores in Q3FY12, representing an increase of 3%.
• Operating Profit (PBIDT excluding Other Income) for the quarter increased to Rs 25.43 crores from a loss of Rs 8.81 crores in Q3FY12.
• Financial Expenses for the quarter decreased by 38% to Rs 13.72 crores from Rs 22.10 crores in Q3FY12.
• Provision for taxation for the quarter was nil, same as that of Q3FY12. Although the Company is required to make a provision for MAT, due to the set-off of the carried forward business loss of the previous year, there is no taxable income for the year and hence no provision was required for tax.
• Consequently, Net Profit grew to Rs 5.37 crores as compared to a Net Loss of Rs 32.76 crores during the same quarter of the previous year.
• Earnings per share for the quarter (Face value of Rs 2.00) stood at Rs 0.60 vis-à-vis a negative of Rs 3.64 in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.
• The Electro Mechanical Projects and Packaged Airconditioning Systems business, accounting for 66% of the total revenues in the quarter, increased 8% while segment results increased to Rs 22.94 crores as compared to a loss of Rs 15.18 crores during Q3FY12, mainly due to better gross margins and focus on business from more profitable segments.
• Cooling Products revenue registered a decline of 5% in the quarter, while segment results declined by 47% to Rs 3.78 crores. Q3 is generally a lean season for this business. However, due to a change in the Bureau of Energy Efficiency norms which came into effect from Jan 1, 2013, there was a significant off-take in primary sales in Q3FY12, which was not applicable in the quarter during review. Further, the erosion of margins in sourcing and selling of installation accessories such as copper pipes and insulation material, which had adversely affected this segment in the previous quarter, had some impact in this quarter as well.
• The Professional Electronics and Industrial Systems business revenues reduced by 9%, while segment results declined 18% to Rs 9.56 crores, owing to the unfavourable business climate and declining demand in the capital goods sector.
• Carry Forward Order Book as on December 31, 2012 reduced to Rs 1628 crores compared to Rs 2160 crores as at December 31, 2011, due to slower new order bookings as well as a concerted effort to improve the quality of new orders won.

Financial Performance For The Nine-Month Period Ended December 31, 2012 (Cumulative Q3FY13)

• For the nine-month period ended December 31, 2012, the Company reported a Total Operating Income of Rs 1908.82 crores, as compared to Rs 1887.23 crores over the same period in the previous year representing a marginal growth of 1%.
• Operating Profit (PBIDT excluding Other Income) increased 194% to Rs 79.11 crores as compared to Rs 26.90 crores during the same period last year.
• Net Profit grew to Rs 33.18 crores as compared to a Net Loss of Rs 43.77 crores during the same period of the previous year.

Outlook

While the external market environment continues to be challenging, businesses such packaged airconditioning, room airconditioners, refrigeration products and after-sales service have a positive outlook. However, the electro mechanical projects business is likely to continue to be negatively impacted for the next couple of quarters, mainly due to the slowdown in the commercial construction sector. The Company will focus on leveraging on the opportunities available in certain segments as well as in improving profitability over the next few quarters.

For additional information, please contact: B Thiagarajan, President, Airconditioning & Refrigeration Products Group, Blue Star Limited, Bandbox House, 254D, Dr Annie Besant Road, Worli, Mumbai – 400 030 email: btn@bluestarindia.com Telephone: 09821078098.