Storage battery major Exide Industries on Thursday reported a net profit of 4,119.65 crore on a standalone basis for the fourth quarter last fiscal on the back of an exceptional item of4,693.75 crore towards the gains arising from the sale of Exide Life Insurance. The battery maker’s profit before exceptional item and tax fell 17.82% year-on-year to 271.15 crore for the period under review from329.97 crore for the same period of FY21.

Notably, Exide Industries sold Exide Life Insurance, its erstwhile wholly-owned subsidiary, to HDFC Life Insurance for a total sale consideration of Rs 6,687 crore. During the fourth quarter of FY22, the battery major’s revenue from operation rose 16% y-o-y at Rs 3408.64 crore compared with Rs 2938.84 crore for the same period of FY21. Ebitda fell 15.29% y-o-y at Rs 349 crore. Ebitda witnessed a decline due to higher input costs along with high fuel and freight costs, said Mansi Lall, research analyst at Prabhudas Lilladher. Ebitda margin came in at 10.2%, largely impacted by raw material costs.

Subir Chakraborty, MD & CEO, Exide Industries, said during the fourth quarter sales growth of 16% was supported by overall volume growth and calibrated pricing strategies, implemented across various verticals. “The company was successful inappreciably lowering fixed costs; however, this could not fully neutralise the inflationary impact of sharp and continued escalation in prices of inputs, coupled with runaway fuel and freight costs, leading to decline in operating margins,” Chakraborty added.On Thursday, Exide Industries’ scrip fell 2.23% to end the day at Rs 148.90 on the Bombay Stock Exchange.