ideaForge’s reported a fourth straight quarterly loss, although the loss narrowed on a sequential basis after expanding for three quarters in a row. The drone manufacture reported a net loss of ₹23.56 crore, compared to a loss of ₹25.7 crore it reported last year.
The company’s topline also took at hit, reporting a decline of 85% from last year and 37% from the previous quarter to ₹12.78 crore. ideaForge had reported revenue of ₹86.19 crore last year.
Earnings Before Interest, Tax, Depreciation and Amortisation (EBITDA) for the quarter was a loss of ₹15.14 crore, compared to a positive ₹8.46 crore during the same quarter last year. The loss was narrower than the EBITDA loss of ₹17.41 crore in the March quarter.
On the positives, ideaForge’s Gross Profit Margin expanded to 61.7% from 33.3% last year and 35.9% in March. Margin variation though, is subject to the company’s product mix.
At the end of the June quarter, the company’s order book stood at ₹144.8 crore, higher than the ₹13.6 crore last quarter and ₹54.2 crore last year.
The management of ideaForge believes that the next round of the Production-linked Incentives (PLI) scheme will be rolled out soon and that will be a big tailwind, not just for the industry, but also for the company.
During the quarter, ideaForge had won an emergency procurement order from the Indian Army worth ₹137 crore for mini-UAVs and also signed a strategic collaboration with HFCL for global market access of advanced UAV solutions.
Shares of ideaForge ended 1.% lower on Tuesday at ₹542. Although the stock has recovered significantly from its all-time low of ₹304, it remains below its IPO price of ₹672. The stock was among the most successful listings of 2023, doubling on the day of its stock market debut, but has underperformed since then.
