Ashok Leyland Q4 revenues seen up 8.5% at Rs 4160 cr

By Sonia Shenoy, Research Analyst at CNBC-TV18

Commercial vehicle maker Ashok Leyland is expected to report a fall of 6% year-on-year in its profit after tax of Rs 280 crore for the fourth quarter of FY12, according to CNBC-TV18 poll.
Revenues are seen going up by 8.5% to Rs 4,160 crore from Rs 3,828 crore during the same period. Operating profit margin is seen declining at 11% versus 13.3% year-on-year. Key factors to watch out for:
* Seasonally, this is a strong quarter for MHCV’s due to pre-budget buying so cannot compare QoQ.
* Expect robust volume growth of 20% YoY this quarter to lead to 8.5% revenues growth
* However, despite strong volume growth, revenues growth only 8.5% YoY due to discounts offered and increased proportion of low-value Dost sales.
* Volume growth this quarter aided by newly launched LCV Dost (Sales around 5000 units this quarter), ex-dost, MHCV sales grown only 4% YoY