The Hindu Business Line : BHEL net profit rises 48 pc to Rs 658 cr

BHARAT Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), the public sector engineering and power equipment major, has completed yet another successful year with its net profit soaring by over 48 per cent to Rs 658 crore on an all-time high turnover of Rs 8,662 crore.

For its shareholders, it has translated into an enhanced equity dividend of 60 per cent, the highest proposed so far by the navratna public sector undertaking.Disclosing this while addressing shareholders at the 40th annual general meeting (AGM) of BHEL here on Tuesday, its Chairman and Managing Director, Mr A.K. Puri, noted that the company had once again posted a sterling performance — a double-digit growth in its top line, a quantum jump in the bottom line, a robust order book and across-the-board gains on all parameters in 2003-04 as compared to the previous year.

In addition to BHEL's diversified business portfolio, Mr Puri attributed this performance to the company's strong fundamentals and continued focus on growth strategies, viz. prudent financial management, benchmarking against international standards, aggressive marketing efforts and cost control measures.

In particular, BHEL recorded a quantum surge in economic value addition (EVA), which catapulted to Rs 366 crore in fiscal 2003-04. This, he said, was a commendable performance for the engineering industry and yet again underlined BHEL's track record of being one of the top wealth creators in the country.

The company's profit before tax (PBT) vaulted past the Rs 1,000-crore mark at Rs 1,015 crore and its earnings per share (EPS) also jumped by 48 per cent to Rs 26.89. This apart, both its net worth at Rs 5,278 crore and its net asset value (NAV) per share at Rs 215.6, also went up by over 12 per cent, indicating the intrinsic strength of the company, Mr Puri said.

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