Hyundai navigates rocky road

Hyundai Motor India Ltd's December quarter (Q3FY26) results drew a lacklustre reaction from the Street.

- Manish Joshi [e-mail]

While Ebitda margin was flat year-on-year at 11.2%, unit economics improved slightly.Ebitda (excluding other operating revenue) per vehicle increased by 2% to ₹82,067 per vehicle due to the sharp rise in staff costs and other expenses, even as gross profit per vehicle rose faster by about 9% to ₹217,000.

Some of the cost increases can be attributed to the commissioning of a new plant in Pune.

Volumes were lacklustre, with domestic sales flat year-on-year at 1.47 lakh units. In contrast, rival Maruti Suzuki India Ltd’s volumes grew 21% to 5.65 lakh units.

The stock prices mirror this dichotomy in growth. It appears that the gains from the reduction in the goods and services tax (GST) rates were limited for Hyundai. Its shares are now below the closing price before Independence Day, when Prime Minister Narendra Modi initially hinted at a GST rate cut.