Hero MotoCorp Q3 Net Up 11% at Rs 583 Crore

New Delhi: Country's largest two-wheeler maker Hero MotoCorp posted a 11 per cent rise in its net profit at Rs 582.98 crore for the quarter ended December 31, 2014.

The company had a profit of Rs 524.66 crore during the same period of previous fiscal.

Net sales of the company, however, declined marginally to Rs 6,792.51 crore during the October-December period, as against Rs 6,845.91 crore during the same period of previous fiscal, Hero MotoCorp Ltd said in a statement.

During the quarter, the company's total sales stood at 16,48,548 units.

Commenting on the results, Hero MotoCorp Chief Executive Officer Pawan Munjal said: "We continue to make investments as we pass through a phase of global expansion, capacity enhancement and brand building and these added expenses have impacted our margins in the third quarter."

He added that the company believes that these are investments which will yield the desired results in the long term.

"Going forward, we remain cautiously optimistic about the business climate. With crude prices hovering below the $50 mark, and commodity prices continuing to remain soft, a lot will also depend on the much-awaited budget to be presented by the central government later this month," Mr Munjal said.

As part of the global expansion, Hero made its debut in Colombia during the quarter while it also roped in Tiger Woods as its global corporate partner to intensify brand building initiatives in global markets, Mr Munjal said.

Hero MotoCorp shares closed at Rs 2,812.35 apiece on the BSE, down 0.78 per cent from previous close.