Macrotech Developers To Meet Rs 9,000-cr Property Sales Target In FY22

Realty firm Macrotech Developers expects to achieve its target of 50 per cent growth in sales bookings this fiscal to Rs 9,000 crore despite sluggish housing demand in April-May in view of second wave of the Covid-19 pandemic, a top company official said.

Mumbai-based Macrotech Developers, which markets its properties under 'Lodha' brand, got listed on the stock exchanges in April this year after raising Rs 2500 crore through its initial public offering (IPO). It is one of the leading real estate firm in the country.

In an interview with PTI, Macrotech Developers MD and CEO Abhishek Lodha sounded confident of meeting the sales bookings guidance of Rs 9,000 crore for the current 2021-22 financial year as housing demand recovered strongly after almost a washout in April-May.

The company's sales bookings stood at Rs 5,970 crore last fiscal year.

"Our housing sales were badly impacted during April-May because of the second wave. But, in June, we achieved sales bookings of around Rs 650 crore and demand in July is also good," he told PTI.

Asked whether the company would revise downward its sales bookings guidance, Lodha replied in negative.

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"Sales bookings in April-May were very low but we have already factored that in our sales guidance. We are on track to achieve Rs 9,000 crore figure, provided there is no further disruption," he said.

In the April-June quarter, Macrotech Developers clocked a total sales booking of Rs 957 crore, of which Rs 654 crore came in June.

Bullish on the outlook for housing demand, Lodha said: "Importance of owning a house has increased significantly since the outbreak of Covid-19 pandemic. People are using their savings to buy homes. Interest rates on home loans are at historical low."

To encash pent up as well as fresh demand, he said the company would launch 5 million square feet of projects in this fiscal, of which 0.9 million sq ft were already launched in the first quarter. The company has inventories in the ongoing housing projects as well.

"Housing demand is gradually consolidating towards trusted developers. New supply is more disciplined," he observed.

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Lodha said the company would continue to focus on the Mumbai Metropolitan Region (MMR) and Pune markets for development of housing as well as industrial and logistics parks. The company does not have any plan to enter new geographies but will expand aggressively in various micro-markets of the MMR and Pune, where it has no or limited presence, through partnerships with landowners.

In the warehousing development business, Macrotech recently sold 22.3 acres land parcel in its Pallava Industrial and Logistics Park to a Japanese firm for an estimated deal value of around Rs 80 crore. On debt, Lodha said the company's net debt has reduced by 23 per cent during the first quarter of this fiscal year to Rs 12,435 crore.

"We will reduce our debt further in the coming quarters. We are on track to meet the guidance of bringing net debt below Rs 10,000 crore level at the end of this fiscal year," he added.

The company's average cost of debt came down by 70 bps (basis points) from 12.3 per cent in March' 21) to 11.6 per cent in June'21).

On Friday, Macrotech Developers reported a consolidated net profit of Rs 160.91 crore for the quarter ended June. It had posted a net loss of Rs 134.44 crore in the year-ago period. Total income grew to Rs 1,712.36 crore in the first quarter of this fiscal year from Rs 572.53 crore in the corresponding period of the previous year.

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