International steels’ profit falls 16 percent in Q1

KARACHI: Profit of International Steels Limited (ISL) fell 16 percent year-on-year to Rs841.343 million for the first quarter ended September 30, translating into earnings per share (EPS) of Rs1.93, a bourse filing said on Tuesday.

ISL recorded profit of Rs1.003 billion with EPS of Rs2.31 in the same quarter a year earlier, a statement to the Pakistan Stock Exchange (PSX) said.

Analyst Moazzam Akhtar at Taurus Securities Limited said the company’s sales rose five percent year-on-year in 1QFY2019 mainly due to an increase in average selling price. However, gross profit fell eight percent year-on-year as cost of sales rose eight percent, which squeezed gross margin to 14.42 percent.

“This decline was mainly on the back of rupee devaluation, lower than expected volumes, and rise in HRC (hot rolled coil) prices,” Akhtar said.

“Finance cost rose a massive 153 percent due to increase in borrowings made to fund expansions, while taxes on the other hand saw a decline of 24 percent.”