Profit, revenue up in Q4, SIS now hopes for a perception change

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"How many BSE-500 companies will be able to report a positive Q4 result?" asks Rituraj Sinha.

The question sounds rhetorical but it isn't.

IT biggies such as TCS and Infosys and FMCG major HUL are among leading corporate that have seen their revenues and profits take a hit in the final quarter of the last financial year as the coronavirus ravaged the economy.

But SIS, the country's largest security solutions provider that Sinha heads, just reported a 13 percent growth in its March revenues. Its profits jumped 48 percent, if not adjusted for the changes in the tax structure.

"While most of the other businesses were hurt because of the last few days of March (the lockdown was announced on March 24), our business actually grew," says Sinha.

SIS had a monthly run rate of Rs 728 crore in March 2020 compared to Rs 644 crore in the same period last year. Quarter-on-quarter, the revenue in the last three months was up 1.4 percent.

Apart from providing security personnel at offices and sites, SIS is also the second-largest player in India in facilities and cash-management segments.

Not surprisingly, the facilities management vertical has grown the fastest, by 23.5 percent in the fourth quarter, and by 34.8 percent for the full year.

The viral outbreak underlined the importance of cleanliness and apart from keeping personal hygiene, companies want to ensure their premises are not infected. Even one employee getting infected can disrupt business.

"If you look at the guidelines that the home ministry released in April, for industries to restart operations, one would realise that we play an integral role. From checking temperature of employees coming in to work, to maintaining hygiene and to disinfecting the workplace, we are an essential service," says Sinha.

The government has includes facilities management and security in the list of essential services.

That's why, even though many companies closed offices to comply with lockdown, SIS remained in business.

"For chief executives and entrepreneurs, who couldn't access their offices or factories, having security is of paramount importance," says the SIS CEO.

He is now hoping that the coronavirus will make investors and the market realise the “true potential” of the sector.

"We were always bracketed with staffing companies. SIS is not that. It is an essential service, just like pharmaceuticals, healthcare or supermarkets," says Sinha.