Investing Reflections On India

HB Estate Developers operates in the real estate industry – constructing hotels, shopping malls and residential properties; and renting commercial space. It is currently involved in hotel construction for Taj Vivanta in Gurgaon.  It also has a 57% interest in a real estate project with Parsvanth Developers costing about 30cr.  The project is currently loss making but is backed by equivalent net assets. Since the company is primarily an investment company, the balance sheet would be more significant to understanding the financial aspects of its operations than the income statement.  The company had over 300cr invested in its main project.  It financed this with 240cr of external debt net of 24cr in cash and liquid assets as at the end of the last financial year. The construction business is subject to the risk of rising material costs (steel, cement etc.).  It is also adversely impacted by crude oil price rises, which impact hotels’ tourism revenues.  Furthermore, the

The company operates in the textile industry – processing and selling fabrics.  It focuses on heritage and craft fabrics and uses dyes/plain fabrics to create printed fabrics.  The company has reported very modest growth in revenues and operating profits over the last five years – reporting 4cr of operating profits on revenues of 36cr in the last financial year. It employed no net debt in financing its operations and held about 9cr in liquid investments, primarily in equity mutual funds. The industry is blighted by government policies that work against domestic players such as propping up of ‘zombie’ units (to preserve employment) and export restrictions on cotton yarn and other related products.  The company is forced to import fabrics due to the lack of domestic supplies, resulting in exposure to a weakening INR.  Moreover, the US and Europe account for over 60% of Indian textile exports, resulting in substantial diminution in the industry’s overall revenue as a result

Marathon Nextgen is in the business of real estate construction and sale. This is an 80-year old company with 2 nd generation management and has four projects running currently with 125cr committed to one project.  The business model is largely focused on eventual sale of constructed properties. The company has reported somewhat erratic performance numbers as a result of its business model (see above). It reported 75cr of operating profits on total income of 130cr in the last financial year.  However, it employed only moderate debt to accomplish this. The business is highly competitive and is primarily exposed to the interest rate cycle where customers are unwilling to pay up in a high interest rate/high EMI environment resulting in a real lack of pricing power under tight money conditions.  The company was a BIFR case in 2003 as a result of unbearable debt burdens and accumulated losses.  This is a major adverse factor against management competence. In addition

Inducto Steel is in the business of shipbreaking and selling scrap iron and steel. The company has reported erratic profitability over the last year including a spurt in revenues in the last financial year – reporting about 1cr of operating profits on revenues of 64cr. It operated with high levels of debt in relation to accounting net worth and earnings and used up significant cash in operations requiring large equity financing in 2007-08 (diluting former minority shareholders) and debt financing (increasing financial risk). The business is primarily dependent on the supply (and prices) of old ships and selling prices for iron and steel.  Both these factors are influenced by international market conditions – with shipping having more pronounced and persistent cycles.  Management are also engaged in real estate activities through joint ventures/partnerships as well as lending activities to other corporate entities.  There is no reason to believe they have any specialised

Sam Industries operates in three business segments i.e. Soy Products, Welding and Real Estate. It is a supplier of soy products including de-oiled cakes oil etc., welding products and invests in real estate ventures including housing construction and sale. The company has reported erratic revenues and profits over the last five years – reporting a net operating loss of 3cr on revenues of 24cr in the last financial year.  However, it had minimal net debt as at last financial year end. The soy business is exposed to the risks of fluctuating soy seed prices, which is dependent on monsoon conditions.  The welding business is exposed to the cyclical metal industries.  The real estate venture appears to indicate a lack of focus and is subject to the risks of interest rate cyclicality, high competition, execution delays etc. Management does not declare dividends despite lack of profitable growth in its core businesses.  Instead they have made unwarranted forays into real es

Orient Beverages is in the business of supplying ‘Bisleri’ branded mineral water.  It is also engaged in real estate activities. The company has reported no growth in revenues but reported consistent net profits (including rental income – see below) over the last five years.  It reported a net profit of 1cr on revenues of 13cr in the last financial year.  It operated with a relatively high net debt load of 5cr (as at 30 th September 2010). The mineral water business has been on a declining trend and is exposed to further deterioration of revenues as a result of slowing demand for its products with no real prospect of a turnaround.  It has been a victim of labour unrest at its plants and there doesn’t appear to be a reason why this wouldn’t happen again in the future.  It has also veered away from its core business and into real estate with currently one major rental customer (United Credit) generating its rental income – this would require a different assessment of its business pr

Metrochem Industries is currently engaged in the business of real estate activities. It formerly owned a dyes and intermediates division, which was demerged from the company in the last financial year.   The proceeds from the demerger are currently deployed in real estate activities with the bulk of it tied up in advances for construction etc. Therefore, the past record of profitability is irrelevant to assessing future business prospects.   It operated with a net cash position of about 30cr (as at 31 st March, 2010). The business is exposed to the risks of the real estate industry including construction material price rises, low availability of land for construction, high competition, vulnerability to economic downturns, increasing customer bargaining power (as a result of greater information availability etc.), greater government regulations on real estate activities etc. The lack of a decent track record in real estate activities would prevent the formation of further sensible ju

Sujana Universal is in the business of manufacturing steel castings, bearings, appliances etc. with other divisions operating in the fields of infrastructure, share trading and other activities. The company has shown high growth in revenues, which haven’t translated to similar increases in operating profits.   It reported 70cr of operating profits on revenues of about 3000cr in the twelve months ending 31 st March, 2011.   It operated with a relatively high net debt of about 200cr. The business, however, generates weak operating cash flows as a result of heavy investment in its working capital. The primary risk with this business is the lack of focus in its business activities – with management time devoted to activities seemingly unrelated to their primary business (steel castings) such as real-estate, share trading etc. and a host of unquoted subsidiaries engaged in unknown activities.   In its steel castings business, it is blighted by the cyclicality of the industry with pe