BENGALURU (Reuters) – Hero MotoCorp reported a bigger-than-expected rise in fourth-quarter profit on Wednesday, helped by price hikes and higher sales of its mid-range motorcycles, and said it will set up a unit in Brazil to make two-wheelers.
The company’s standalone profit rose 18.3% year-on-year to 10.16 billion rupees ($121.7 million) in the three months ended March 31. Analysts, on average, had expected a profit of 10.06 billion rupees, per LSEG data.
Two-wheeler sales have grown steadily in India over the years, including by 25% in the latest quarter, driven by continued momentum in the 125cc+ motorcycle segment, according to analysts.
The segment makes up most of the fleet for the Splendor motorcycle maker, and its recent launch of the ‘Xtreme 125R’ in that segment had a strong initial performance, they added.
Hero reported a 9.6% rise in total sales for the quarter, pushing revenue up by 14.6% to 95.19 billion rupees. Exports formed 3.6% of Hero’s total sales in fiscal 2024, up slightly from the previous year’s share of 3.2%.
The company, India’s largest motorcycle maker by market share, is also looking to up international sales in its key export market of Latin America, with plans to set up a unit in Brazil.
The subsidiary will be involved in manufacturing and distributing two-wheeler vehicles, parts, and accessories, the company said.
Hero has six manufacturing plants in India, and one each in Colombia and Bangladesh.
Rival Bajaj Auto beat its fourth-quarter profit estimates last month. TVS Motor will also report on Wednesday, while Royal Enfield bike-maker Eicher Motors will report on Friday.
($1 = 83.5049 Indian rupees)
(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas and Varun Hebbalalu in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)
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