Q3 Earnings Review

The Nifty 50 companies missed the average estimate for the quarter ended December, dragged by the loss of Tata Motors Ltd.—the biggest in India’s corporate history. The combined earnings per share of the benchmark index constituents missed the consensus estimate by 19 percent, according to BloombergQuint’s calculations. That’s when 41 of the 50 companies have either met or beat estimates—the highest in at least six quarters. Of this, 20 companies beat estimates, and 21 reported numbers in line with expectations.

The companies reported a combined earnings per share of Rs 97 for the three months ended December. That compares with the Rs 119 estimated as on Jan. 9 when the earnings season kicked off with IndusInd Bank Ltd. reporting its numbers.

While almost all automakers missed estimates, corporate-facing banks and oil and gast firms aided overall earnings in the reporting quarter. Here’s how the sectors have fared this quarter:

Agriculture

UPL Ltd. reported strong double-digit growth in all geographies, barring India.

 It closed the Arysta LifeScience acquisition.

Automobile

All automakers missed estimates in the third quarter.

Raw material costs and weak demand impacted financials.

Muted outlook by managements.

Tata Motors Ltd. loss weighed on Nifty EPS.

Cement

UltraTech Cement Ltd. met estimates, but the management’s outlook was weak.

Subdued pricing impacted earnings.

Realisations and utilisations were lower-than-estimated in the third quarter.

Construction

Larsen & Toubro Ltd. set sales guidance higher at 12-15 percent.

Consumer Stocks

Volume growth surprised, but margin pressure remained.

Continued  to see resilient top line and volume growth.

Commodity input prices dragged gross margin.

Titan Company Ltd. beat estimates, led by the jewellery segment.

Oil & Gas

Reliance Industries Ltd. showed strong performance across segments.

Hindustan Petroleum Corporation Ltd. and Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd. beat estimates on higher refining margins.

Gas trading aided GAIL (India) Ltd.’s financials during the quarter.

Financial Institutions

Infrastructure Leasing & Financial Services Ltd. concerns continued to weigh on private sector banks.

Corporate banks outperformed retail-focused lenders.

State Bank of India beat estimates on account of better asset quality and lower slippages. Margins remained stable for banks.

Cautious stance on lending by housing finance companies.

Information Technology

Tech Mahindra Ltd. outperformed peers on the back of strong deal wins.

All other IT companies reported numbers in line, but margin remained weak.

Metals

Metal stocks met estimates.

JSW Steel Ltd.’s India business reported strong numbers, but it remained weak for Tata Steel Ltd.

Pharmaceuticals

U.S. sales improved but outlook remained cautious.

Domestic markets continued to drag.

Sun Pharmaceutical Industries Ltd. beat estimates on the back of one-time adjustments related to deferred tax.

Telecom

Average revenue per user of mobile operators grew for the first time in last 10 quarters.

 Bharti Infratel Ltd. beat estimates on the back of cost cuts and higher rentals.