Tata Motors’ consolidated net profit for the quarter ended September rose 195 per cent to ₹2,483 crore, from ₹828 crore a year ago, as the company’s turnaround plan began showing results.

Income from operations for the quarter rose about 9 per cent to ₹70,156 crore against ₹63,577 crore last year. Sales (including exports) of commercial and passenger vehicles stood at 1.52 lakh units, a growth of 13.8 per cent. The growth came in despite a ₹2,393-crore impact due to forex losses, stemming from a stronger rupee and weaker pound sterling.

The medium and heavy commercial vehicle segment grew 28 per cent, the intermediate and light CVs 35 per cent and small CVs 38 per cent, the company said. Passenger vehicles grew 14.4 per cent over the same period last fiscal. “After a challenging first quarter, Tata Motors has demonstrated impressive results with month-on-month growth in sales and market share, enabled by a slew of new product launches and customer-centric initiatives.

“With our turnaround plan in full action, we are seeing encouraging results and we will continue to drive sustainable profitable growth to meet our future aspirations,” Guenter Butschek, MD and CEO, said.

Standalone performance On a standalone basis, Tata Motors continued to make losses. However, it narrowed the gap towards profitability quite significantly. Net loss for the quarter stood at ₹295 crore, against a loss of ₹631 crore in the the year-ago period.

Standalone revenues (net of excise) rose 30 per cent to ₹13,400 crore (₹10,311 crore).

Operating profit (EBITDA) jumped 189 per cent to ₹971crore (₹336 crore), with operating margin clocking 7.2 per cent.

The company’s market share for CVs grew 1.7 per cent year-on-year and 3.9 per cent quarter-on-quarter on the back of newly launched products, increased acceptance of SCR (selective catalytic reduction) technology and a steep ramp-up of production.

The company said it was able to increase production by about 73 per cent in the quarter.

British subsidiary Jaguar Land Rover Automotive plc, which accounts for more than three-fourths of Tata Motors’ consolidated revenues, saw a 38 per cent increase in second-quarter pre-tax profits to £385 million.

Revenues were up 11.5 per cent to £6.3 billion with an increase in margin (EBIT) of 100 basis points to 5.2 per cent.

Higher sales and profits reflect the continuing ramp-up of new models such as the Range Rover Velar, Land Rover Discovery, Jaguar XF Sportbrake, Jaguar F-PACE and, in China, the Jaguar XFL, the company said in a statement.

Retail sales grew 5.1 per cent to 149,690, with increases in China (27.4 per cent) and the US (5.1 per cent) offsetting lower sales in the UK and Europe.

Ralf Speth, CEO, Jaguar Land Rover, said: “Although we are facing headwinds and uncertainty in some markets, Jaguar Land Rover is well-positioned to deliver further global expansion.”

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