Eicher Motors

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About the Company

Eicher Motors Limited is an Indian manufacturer of motorcycles and commercial vehicles. Eicher is the parent company of Royal Enfield, a manufacturer of middleweight motorcycles. In addition to the motorcycles business, Eicher has a joint venture with Sweden’s AB Volvo – Volvo Eicher Commercial Vehicles Limited (VECV).

Q2 FY23 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results:

1. The company achieved the highest revenue of  ₹3,519 crores for Q2, up by about 56.4% from ₹2,250 crores last year.
2.  EBITDA is about ₹822crores, up by 75% YoY, against ₹470 crores last year. 
3. . PAT stood at about ₹657 crores, which is the highest ever for EML, up by about 76% on YoY basis as against about ₹373 crores reported last year.
4. Company’s market share on standalone basis stood at 30% Vs 26% YoY.
5. Margins for H1 stood at 24% Vs 19% YoY.
6. VECV saw margins improve from 3.9% to 5.8% YoY in H1 & Revenue increased by 70% YoY. 

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The company started this quarter with the launch of the all-new Hunter 350 on its J-Series engine platform in Bangkok recently it also launched Super Meteor 650 on the Twin platform at EICMA 2022 in Italy.
2. The company’s market share climbed up to 7% in the Americas as of now and 9% in APAC and about 10% in the EMEA region.
3. The company has 710 multi-brand outlets and about 175 exclusive stores outside India.
4. The CV industry is reporting a good show with industry for >3.5 tons has grown by 68% And the momentum continued even in October where the growth has been 15%.
5. The management is confident of seeing a new peak in the CV industry in the coming two-three years.
6. The company believes there exist several headwinds, especially in exports because of the global situation, especially the foreign exchange situation in some of the South Asian markets like Bangladesh, Nepal, and Sri Lanka.
7. The company’s market share in the heavy-duty trucks segment combined with Eicher and Volvo trucks is at around 8.2%.
8. Market share in buses & light, medium duty trucks stands at 24-25% & 28-30% respectively.
9. The company introduced electric buses & executed 40 electric bus orders for Chandigarh city.
10. The company explains the motive behind Hunter was to develop a product for those consumers who love the brand Royal Enfield and wanted to associate with the brand Royal Enfield but wanted a motorcycle, which is a bit more accessible, slightly lower in weight compared to the motorcycles like Classic 350 and Bullet 650.
11. Hunter had an 18.2% first-time buyer rate Vs the previous average of 15% for Royal Enfield & is being adopted more by younger audiences.
12. The management expects the margins in Hunter to improve owing to commodity prices softening, value engineering activity & possible price hikes if the commodity doesn’t ease.
13. The company expects good performance in the CV industry due to the pent-up replacement cycle coupled with the need for more productivity & cost reduction.
14.  The management doesn’t anticipate any problem in comfortably transitioning into OBD-IIA norms.
15. The management expects the impact of commodity deflation to flow in Q3.
16. The company doesn’t feel the production is a constraint due to ample capacity coupled with semi-conductor shortages easing off.
17. The company’s pricing strategy while introducing a new product is market-focused rather than cost-plus-focused.
18. The management explains that the company was a one-platform company because UC was the only platform but, now it has two platforms in the form of J-Series and P.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company delivered a great quarter achieving highest revenue of Rs 3,519 Cr, and increasing its revenue by 56% YoY. The company recent launched of Hunter 350 motorcycle at an accessible price point has received good response from journalists all across the world largely due to lightweight & easy to ride features. It remain interesting to see how company expand its global footprints with its all-new products and whether it can replicates the success its pervious success. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q4 FY22 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results:

1. The company had a decent quarter with a 8% YoY rise in consolidated revenues, which was up 11% QoQ. Similarly, PAT was up 16% YoY and 33% QoQ. 
2. FY22 figures were decent with 17% YoY revenue rise and 24% YoY rise in PAT.
3. In Q4, Royal Enfield sold 1,82,125 motorcycles, which is down 10.4% YoY.
4. EBIDTA margin for the quarter increased by 210 Bps YoY to 23.7% while EBIDTA for FY22 stood at 21.1%
5.  Standalone EBITDA margins for H1 rose to 19% vs 16.8% in H1FY21. 
6. Overall market share was above 30% in the 125+ cc segment.  
7. The company has added 33 exclusive stores and about 44 multi brand outlets in its export market.
8. VECV saw PAT for FY22 at Rs.108 Cr Vs Rs.63 Cr YoY while EBIDTA margins decreased by 120 Bps YoY to 5.6%.
9. Total CV volumes & market share stood at 57,077 & 16.6% respectively.
10. The Board of declared a final dividend of Rs.21 per share for FY22.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The company closed Q4 with a market share of 7% in overall motorcycle industry while it has around 90% market share in the 250cc space.
2. The company maintained its market share of around 30% in Light and Medium and duty tuck segments, and 7% in Heavy duty trucks.
3. The company in Q4 saw exports grow by 59% YoY to 21,787 motorcycles while the yearly sales more than doubled from 35,700 to 74,238 motorcycles.
4.  The company’s two new product introductions in FY22 were Classic 350 and the Scram 411.
5. The company’s market share in 5–16-ton segment was 30.2%, as against 30.6% YoY, in buses market share improved from 19.9% to 21.6%, In heavy duty trucks market share is at 7.3% Vs 7.9% YoY.
6. The company has 34% market share in the entire CNG market.
7. In the VECV segment, the company introduced almost 66 new products last year, which included 25 in light and medium duty, 16 in heavy duty & 7 in buses.
8. The company’s other expenditure have increased by Rs.200 Cr to Rs.1400 Cr in the last 2 years primarily due to higher freight costs due to scale up of export biz where shipping rates have been very high.
9. The management expects supply chain issues with regards to semi-conductor shortage to improve post Q1 of FY23 due to higher capacities coming in the market.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw a decent quarter with revenue growth close to 10% while PAT growth of 24%. The export business has done very well and has grown 59% YoY in volumes in Q4. The newly launched Classic 350 has also seen good reception. The management expects the semiconductor shortage to ease going forward. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry, how international expansion plans pan out in the future, and whether the new Classic 350 replicates the success of the previous version. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q3 FY22 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results:

1. The company had a bad quarter with a 0.6% YoY rise in consolidated revenues, but it was up 26% QoQ. Similarly, PAT was down -14.2% YoY and up 22.2% QoQ.
2. 9M figures were good with 21.3% YoY revenue rise and 30% YoY rise in PAT mainly due to smaller base in 9MFY21.
3. Volumes for 9M was at 416,000 vs 407,000 last year.
4. EBITDA growth was at 18.9% in 9M.
5. Standalone EBITDA margins for 9M fell to 19.6% vs 20.1% in 9MFY21.
6. Overall market share was at 27% in the 125+ cc segment.
7. The company opened 22 studio stores and 40 large format stores in 9M.
8. The number of international stores has risen to 156 with presence in over 660+ multi branded outlets.
9. VECV saw sales of Rs 8417 Cr in 9M with EBITDA margin of 5.1% and a PAT profit of Rs 12 Cr.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The company commenced operations at Royal Enfield’s CKD facility in Thailand during Q3, which is a very promising market for the company.
2. The benefits of operating leverage and alternate sourcing were visible in the company’s sequential margin improvement.
3. Royal Enfield now has currently three assembling units outside India; one in Argentina, the second in Columbia, and the third in Thailand.
4. VECV delivered strong growth in all parts of the business, including a 25% growth in top line and volumes, with a market share of 30% in the light and medium-duty segment.
5. At an overall level, the company continues to face challenges due to ongoing supply chain problems and inflation.
6. Royal Enfield had a market share of 9% in the overall motorcycle segment for December ’21.
7. Exports have risen 57.3% YoY for Royal Enfield at around 17,000 units.
8. The company’s total footprint as of now stands at 2,118; of which 1065 are in dealership formats and 1053 are in studio formats.
9. Total non-motorcycle business revenue stands at about 15% of overall revenues.
10. The company witnessed QoQ growth in the CV industry and VEVC continued to perform better than the industry backed by higher demand for CNG trucks and solid response in new export markets.
11. LMD segment consistently performed well, maintaining a 30% market share and over 50% market share in the LMD CNG segment. Heavy-duty market share grew to 8%.
12. VECVs exports have grown by 72% and the company has added new markets in Southern Africa, Latin America, and the Middle East.
13. The company recently launched intercity coaches and sleeper buses built in the Volvo India Bus Facility in Hoskote on Eicher chassis.
14. The management believes that the Eicher intercity bus has enormous potential in the coming years.
15. The company has a very healthy order book and is looking to add more vendors to ramp up production and reduce the waiting period.
16. On a sequential basis, the company witnessed an ASP drop due to a rise in the India business leading to lower percentages of international business.
17. The new launch Classic 350; launched in September-October received a fantastic reception and booking numbers are growing for the model MoM.
18. The company has a strong pipeline of motorcycles that will be launched going ahead.
19. The management is confident in the supply chains ramping up MoM going ahead.
20. A cost rise of Rs. 2000 per bike was incurred by the company due to inflation in various commodities, mainly Aluminium.
21. The company is working on prototypes, infrastructure, and product roadmaps for the EV space. Although it does not plan to roll out or announce anything shortly.
22. The company has taken a 1.5% price hike on average in Q4 against commodity inflation.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw a bad quarter with a 0.6% and -14.2% rise in revenues and profits in Q3. The company continues to see good reception to the MiY platform and around 90% of new bookings going through the app. MiY has also enabled an increase of over 100% in the sale of accessories. The newly launched Classic 350 has also seen good reception and bookings are rising MoM. The management expects the semiconductor shortage to ease going forward. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry, how international expansion plans pan out in the future, and whether the new Classic 350 replicates the success of the previous version. The company is also having a very healthy order book and is now focusing on the supply side. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q2 FY22 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results:

1. The company had an average quarter with a 5.6% YoY rise in consolidated revenues, but it was up 12.5% QoQ. Similarly, PAT was up 8.7% YoY and 57% QoQ.
2. H1 figures were very good with 41% YoY revenue rise and 112% YoY rise in PAT mainly due to smaller base in H1FY21.
3. Volumes for H1 was at 245,685 vs 208,000 last year.
4. Consolidated EBITDA margin was at 19.7% in H1.
5. Standalone EBITDA margins for H1 rose to 19% vs 16.8% in H1FY21.
6. Overall market share was at 26% in the 125+ cc segment.
7. The company opened 21 studio stores and 28 large format stores in H1.
8. The number of international stores has risen to 149 with presence in over 650 multi branded outlets.
9. VECV saw sales of Rs 4792 Cr in H1 with EBITDA margin of 3.9% and a PAT loss of Rs 54 Cr.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. Exports have risen 152% YoY for RE at around 18,000 units.
2. The company launched the new Classic 350 model in Q2 which has gotten good reviews.
3. VECV saw its market share in the 5-15 tons segment at 34%.
4. The company sold 124,000 bikes in Q2 which was up 17% YoY despite pressure on volumes due to the semiconductor shortage.
5. The Meteor model continues to see good reception and it has also won a prestigious international award in the retro motorcycle category.
6. Sales volumes for VECV have risen 85% YoY to over 15,000 units in Q2.
7. The company saw a big shift of almost 50% towards CNG trucks due to a rise in diesel prices according to the management.
8. VECV also launched a new range of 6 heavy-duty Volvo FM and FMX trucks which are to be used for specialized purposes like mining.
9. Overall MiY penetration has risen to over 90% for the company’s sales.
10. Around 2/3rds of the increase in ASP is due to the rise in prices of all products and 1/3rd is due to the rise of international sales.
11. The management expects the semiconductor shortage to ease from Mid-September onwards.
12. Despite the rise in selling prices for all products, the demand remains resilient according to the management.
13. The management insists that the customer profiles for both Meteor and the new Classic 350 are very different and there shouldn’t be any cannibalization between them.
14. The management maintains that although inquiries have dropped 17% since the end of Diwali the number of bookings has remained resilient as these increases are due to commodity price increases.
15. The management also sees financing as a big enabler for a future rise in demand for the company’s bikes.
16. The company is seeing a good number of first-time consumers coming up for the new Classic 350.
17. The management is confident of RE’s success given the wide distribution reach through over 650 MBOs and all its bikes being Euro 5 compliant.
18. The company will be shipping most of its export inventory in Q4 as summer is the best sales season in North America and the EU for motorcycles.
19. The ASP has also gone up due to the high penetration of MiY and the emergence of high-margin models of Meteor and the new Classic 350 according to the management.
20. MiY has enabled the sales of accessories to rise 100%.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw an average quarter with a 5% and 8% rise in revenues and profits in Q2. The export business has done very well and has grown 152% YoY in volumes. The company continues to see good reception to the MiY platform and around 90% of new bookings going through the app. MiY has also enabled an increase of over 100% in the sale of accessories. The newly launched Classic 350 has also seen good reception. The management expects the semiconductor shortage to ease going forward. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry, how international expansion plans pan out in the future, and whether the new Classic 350 replicates the success of the previous version. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q1 FY22 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results:

1. The company had a mixed quarter with a 125% YoY rise in consolidated revenues but it declined 32% QoQ. Similarly, PAT was up to Rs 237 Cr from a loss of Rs 55 Cr in Q1FY21 but it was down 55% QoQ.
2. Volumes for Q1 was at 124,000 vs 57,000 last year.
3. Consolidated EBITDA margin was at 18.4% in Q1.
4. Standalone EBITDA margins for Q1 shrank to 17.5% vs 20.7% in Q4FY21.
5. Overall market share was at 27.7% in the 125+ cc segment.
6. The company opened up 7 studio stores and 8 large format stores in Q1.
7. Export sales were at 9.7% of total sales in FY21.
8. The number of international stores has risen to 140 and the company plans to bring this up to 175 by the end of FY22.
9. VECV saw sales of Rs 1639 Cr in Q1 with EBITDA margin of 1.1% and a PAT loss of Rs 72 Cr.
10. The market share in buses fell to 15.5% from 35.6% a year ago.
11. The market share in the heavy-duty segment fell to 5.5% from 7% a year ago.
12. The market share in the LMD segment fell to 15.5% from 35.6% a year ago.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. Export volumes rose 4x YoY and 28% QoQ to 17,500 units in Q1 for Royal Enfield.
2. The rise in exports was driven by good performance in USA. RE was also the best-selling motorcycle brand in New Zealand and among the top 3 in Thailand.
3. The company has commenced local assembly operations in Columbia. It will be assembling the Himalayan bike initially.
4. The production was affected by lockdowns in Q1 and supply chain disruptions. The semiconductor and ABS shortage has also affected the ramp-up efforts according to the management.
5. All the current stores of RE are now MiY enabled with 80% of Meteor, Classic, Himalayan, and Twins bookings coming through the MiY app.
6. The management states that there is a big opportunity for VECV in the CNG LMD trucks segment.
7. The company achieved its highest ever gross per unit and the shift towards export along with pricing actions are expected to be the reasons for this.
8. The management maintains that demand for RE remains strong in both the domestic and export segments.
9. The company is not going to be making any new hires to replace the outgoing CEO Vinod Dasari and it will appoint the COO Mr. B Govindarajan as the CEO of RE.
10. The management maintains that it is moving cautiously with EV development for RE and the market dynamics are not favorable for entering this market currently as the price of an equivalent EV is essentially double its petrol equivalent. The management believes that it has a 5 to 7-year horizon to develop and make a good quality EV that will be up to the brand image of RE.
11. The company is looking into getting alternative suppliers for semiconductors and reducing dependence on existing supply so that the issue with semiconductors that is going on currently does not get repeated in the future.
12. The management does expect the raw material price headwinds to continue and has stated that RE may bring in more price increases if raw material prices do not moderate.
13. The management states that RE has a clear plan to compete for supremacy in the international midsized motorcycle market and grow in the same way as it has done in India.
14. The global products for RE are mainly the Twins and Himalayan. The meteor 350 is mostly geared for the domestic market.
15. The management states that new product launches will get paused if the requisite parts are not available and thus in case of a supply crunch it is easier to be operating on current volumes and not push for new product launches.
16. In developed markets, the typical customer is on average more than 50- years old and is looking for a replacement. While in developing countries, the customer profile is much younger who is looking to upgrade. The Himalayan is much more popular with the younger age group while the Twins are popular with the older segment in the international market according to the management.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw a mixed quarter due to disruptions from local lockdowns and the 2nd wave of COVID. The export business has done very well and has grown 4x YoY and 28% QoQ in volumes. The company continues to see good reception to the MiY platform and around 80% of new bookings for Meteor, Classic, Himalayan, and Twins are coming from the app. The company continues to face the major challenges plaguing the industry like RM cost inflation and the electronic components shortage, and the management is looking to institute price increases and to source from alternate suppliers to mitigate these issues. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry, how international expansion plans pan out in the future, and how long will the semiconductor shortage last for the auto industry. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q4 FY21 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. The company had a good quarter with a 30% YoY rise in consolidated revenues and a 73% YoY rise in PAT.
2. Volumes for FY21 was at 612,330 vs 698,000 last year.
3. EBITDA margins for FY21 shrank to 20.7% vs 24.3% last year.
4. Standalone EBITDA margin was at 22% in Q4 vs 20.8% a year ago.
5. Overall market share was at 25.9% in the 125+ cc segment.
6. Eicher has a net cash of Rs 7756 Cr in FY21.
7. The company has total locations of 2056 currently with 1,025 stores and 1,031 studio stores across 1,750 cities.
8. Export sales were at 9.7% of total sales in FY21.
9. The number of international stores has risen to 132 and the company plans to bring this up to 175 by the end of FY22.
10. The company launched the 2021 variants of the 650 Twins and Himalayan.
11. The solutions business (non-vehicle) of RE has now risen to 12.5% of total revenues in FY21.
12. The total CV volumes sold in 9M were at 23,101 units vs 37,092 units a year ago.
13. RE has created a co-branded collection in partnership with Levi’s. It has also launched a women’s apparel line.
14. RE also launched its mobile app which includes the MiY function and scheduling services other than community connect and motorcycle content.
15. Total CV market share of VECV has risen to 17.6% from 14.6% a year ago.
16. The market share of VECV in the domestic 3.5-15-ton segment rose to 30.1% vs 29.5% a year ago.
17. The market share in buses increased to 19.9% from 14.1% a year ago.
18. The market share in the heavy-duty segment increased to 6.9% from 5.1% a year ago.
19. VECV saw a profit of Rs 57 Cr in FY21. Revenue from operations for the unit was flat YoY while EBITDA margin improved to 6.8% in FY21 vs 4.9% last year.
20. Export volumes for VECV have risen to 5025 units in FY21 from 4568 units in FY20.
21. Eicher Engineering Components saw sales of Rs 820 Cr in FY21.
22. EML announced a final dividend of Rs 17 per share for FY21.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The motorcycle industry has grown 20% YoY in H2FY21.
2. VECV grew 6% YoY in FY21 in the heavy-duty segment while the industry declined 21% YoY in the same period.
3. Q4 revenue was the highest ever quarterly revenue for Eicher.
4. RE sold 203,000 motorcycles in Q4 which was up 25% YoY. Exports were down 8% YoY at 35,700 in FY21.
5. Total bookings in Q2, Q3 & Q4 have exceeded FY20 bookings.
6. RE did a 3% to 8% price hike across models since Jan.
7. Meteor was launched in USA, UK, and Asia Pacific. It is slated to be launched in LATAM soon.
8. The penetration of MiY is at 80%.
9. The company also launched Service on Wheels, with 800 bikes and 13 mobile service trucks.
10. The company is facing 3 supply chain disruptions. The first is from the global container shortage, while the other two are from local lockdowns in Delhi, Pune, and TN.
11. The management remains confident of the demand and is sure that production can scale back fast to 80k units once normalcy comes back.
12. The company will maintain its pace of launching 1 new model every quarter in FY22.
13. The company has added capacity for Meteor to bring it up to 15000 units from 8000 units previously.
14. The company is now operating on a delivery backlog of 2-3 months.
15. There was a one-off charge of Rs 50 Cr in other expenses in Q4 which is the forex difference in Brazil. The company expects this to reverse going forward.
16. The management has stated that the company uses 30-35% more precious metals as compared to 150 or lower cc bikes. The majority of this is rhodium. Rhodium has risen around 10x in price in the past 1 year. To cope with this, the company has researched and reduced rhodium consumption by 66%.
17. The management assures that the demand for 650 twins is intact in India and volumes were low as the company was focussing on increasing exports for these bikes and thus was increasing the domestic backlog for them.
18. The management states that it takes time for the customer to go from the mid cc bikes like Meteor or Classic to upper premium bikes like 650 twins. The company remains confident of the long-term success of the twins and is patient as most customers are already upgrading from a lower bike when they get their first Enfield.
19. The management does not expect any big delays of more than a month in their upcoming launch schedule from the global chip shortage, as RE has enough chip stocks for expected requirements.
20. The major focus in distribution going forward is international expansion. The management is also looking into direct-to-home delivery of bikes which may cause it to rethink its distribution strategy.
21. Almost 2/3rd of the 500+ cc market has been captured by RE.
22. The material cost for any RE bike is roughly 55% of ASP.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company continued its impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses and once again achieved its highest ever quarterly revenue from operations. The company has seen a good response to the MiY platform and the Meteor which has seen overwhelmingly good response. The demand for the Meteor is so high that the company has even decided to increase its monthly capacity to 15000 units from 8-10k units currently. The next big focus for RE is international expansion. The company still faces major challenges plaguing the industry like RM cost inflation and the electronic components shortage, but the management assures that these issues are dealt with by the company either by reducing the consumption of critical RM or by stocking enough chips. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry and how international expansion plans pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q3 FY21 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. The company had a good quarter with a 19% YoY rise in consolidated revenues and a 7% YoY fall in PAT.
2. Volumes for 9M was at 408,000 vs 535,000 last year. Volumes sold in Q3 was up 5% YoY.
3. EBITDA margins for 9M shrank to 20.1% vs 25.4% last year.
4. Standalone EBITDA margin was at 23.5% in Q3 vs 25.2% a year ago.
5. Overall market share was at 25%
6. The company has total locations of 1889 currently.
7. Export sales have risen from 96% YoY to 38700 units in FY20.
8. The number of international stores has risen to 82 stores in 21 countries and the company plans to bring this up to 100 by the end of FY21.
9. The company launched Meteor 350 model in Q2.
10. MiY and 3-D Configurator to be available on the Royal Enfield App, the website, and across 320 stores initially.
11. The total CV volumes sold in 9M were at 23,101 units vs 37,092 units a year ago.
12. The market share of VECV in the domestic 3.5-15 ton segment rose to 30.3% vs 28.7% a year ago.
13. The market share in buses increased to 26% from 13.9% a year ago.
14. The market share in the heavy-duty segment increased to 7.1% from 4.9% a year ago.
15. VECV saw a loss of Rs 70 Cr in 9M. Revenue from operations for the unit rose 23.9% YoY while EBITDA margin improved to 8.6% in Q3 vs 6.4% last year.
16. The bus segment continues to remain sluggish with a drop of 83% in Q3 as schools remain mostly closed and low inter-state movement of buses.
17. While the overall CV industry (3.5T GVW and above) declined by 52% YTD till December 2020, VECV sales declined by 38% for the same period.
18. The company launched the Meteor 350, an easy and accessible cruiser in India and across Europe, Thailand, and Australia in Q3.
19. It also became the first Indian auto company to open up a store in Japan.
20. It also launched the Classic 350 in two new color-ways along with alloy wheels and tubeless tires.
21. In Q3, 13 new exclusive stores were opened with a focus on Latin American and ASEAN markets – 2 in Thailand, 4 in Argentina, and 3 in Columbia.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The company posted its highest ever quarterly revenue from operations at Rs 2828 Cr in Q3.
2. Motorcycles volumes sold in Q3 were at 199,000 units. Exports were up 30% YoY at 10,800 units.
3. The company increased the production run rate to 75,000 in December.
4. It has hiked prices by 3-5% in the last few months.
5. Demand remains strong with the supply of key components like electronics remaining the main concern.
6. RE added 43 large stores in India and 129 studio stores during the quarter. It has now reached 1889 touchpoints across 1,500 cities in India.
7. The company got very good feedback on the Meteor mainly on the comfort, riding quality, refined engine, and the new tripper navigation pod. The booking rate of Meteor continues to trend at a much higher level than Thunderbird.
8. The company also launched the Make it Yours MiY tool for Meteor which enhanced its market response. On the Meteor alone, the app offers as many as 500,000 permutation combinations.
9. Currently the Twins, Meteor and Classic are available on the MiY app.
10. Since the launch of the RE app in August, the daily users of the RE app have now tripled and the amount of time that the customer is spending on our app is doubled since Q1.
11. The Interceptor was awarded MCN’s Best Retro Bike of the Year, the second time in a row. It also won the Bike Sales Year of the award in Australia.
12. The total sales of trucks and buses stood at 12,800 units, which is up 3.3%, which is better than the 7% decline in Q3.
13. VECV inaugurated its all new fully digital and state-of-the-art manufacturing unit in Bhopal. This unit will be delivering the entire light and medium-duty range of Pro 2000 series, largely replacing the Pro 1000 series in India as VECV’s mainstay. The BSVI units from here will be sold in 40 countries.
14. Every truck sold since August is 100% connected with data coming from those trucks based on the customers’ acceptance. This is used for advanced diagnostics for better customer response by predicting customers’ problems even before some of them happen.
15. VECV added 41 touch points in the 9M period.
16. The management cites the introduction of good products like the Meteor, the branch expansion, and the big focus on digital to the consistently high demand for RE.
17. Cancellations have only been less than 5% showcasing good resilient demand for RE.
18. The management has clarified that the MiY app is mainly used for customization of accessories and it does not include critical components like engine or gearbox. Thus the cycle time for a customized version is no more than 1-2% more than normal. Thus it is also not having any adverse effect on overall production capacity.
19. ASP has gone up mainly due to improving product mix and increase in prices.
20. The Meteor is positioned differently in different regions. As it does well in the 100-110 km/hr speed, it is positioned as a highway bike in India. In western markets, this speed is too low for highway bikes so it is positioned as a city plus bike there. IN ASEAN and LatAM it is positioned as an upgrade bike.
21. The Meteor represents a big export opportunity for RE as it has fuel injection and is Euro-6 and BSVI compliant.
22. In the long run, the management’s target for export contribution to total revenues is at 20%.
23. Around 35-40% of bookings are for Meteor with wait times as long as 4 months.
24. The management has stated that it has learned a lot from the launch and digital engagement of Meteor which can be applied in the future on other product launches.
25. The company is not seeing any cannibalization in sales of other models from the Meteor right now.
26. The electronic component shortage is not a big concern for management and it is only expected to result in a slight delay in production.
27. The RM cost rise impact on gross margin was around 80-100 bps. The management expects this cost inflation to continue as so it has taken the price increase. It has also stated that in the future, all the cost increases will be passed on to customers.
28. The management has admitted that there is some room for increasing assembly capacity by debottlenecking without significant capex.
29. The MiY app is mainly simplifying the process of accessorizing the bike which is very prevalent since the bike is seen more as a discretionary purchase representing a personality statement for the customer rather than a necessary purchase for an essential activity like commute like other 2 wheelers in India.
30. Top 20 cities contributed to 27-30% of the business.
31. Average accessories revenue per vehicle was Rs 6000 for Thunderbird. For Meteor, this is around 1.5 to 1.7 times the number for Thunderbird.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses and its highest ever revenue from operations for a quarter. The company has seen a good response to the MiY platform and the Meteor which has seen overwhelmingly good response. The demand for the Meteor is so high that around 35-40% of new bookings are for the model and wait times are as long as 4 months. The company still faces major challenges plaguing the industry like RM cost inflation and the electronic components shortage. It remains to be seen how long the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry and how its various initiatives like studio stores and Make Your Own platforms pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q2 FY21 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. The company had a mixed quarter with a 4.5% YoY fall in consolidated revenues and a 40% YoY fall in PAT.
2. Volumes for H1 was at 208,000 vs 346,000 last year.
3. EBITDA margins for Q1 shrank to 16.8% in H1FY21 vs 25.5% last year.
4. The company added 171 new studio stores 7 25 large format stores in H1 bringing the total locations up to 1717.
5. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles and a market share of 23.3% in the 125+ cc category.
6. Export sales have risen from 96% YoY to 38700 units in FY20.
7. The number of international stores has risen to 82 stores in 21 countries and the company plans to bring this up to 100 by the end of FY21.
8. The company launched Meteor 350 model in Q2.
9. MiY and 3-D Configurator to be available on the Royal Enfield App, the website and across 320 stores initially.
10. The total CV volumes sold in H1 were at 10,296 units.
11. The market share of VECV in the domestic 3.5-15 ton segment rose to 33.6% vs 28.1% a year ago.
12. The market share in buses excluding exports increased to 30.4% from 14.7% a year ago.
13. The market share in the heavy-duty segment increased to 7.2% from 4.8% a year ago.
14. VECV saw a loss of Rs 127 Cr in H1.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. MiY is now available on the Meteor 350 as well as on the 650 Twin motorcycles.
2. The new launch Meteor 350 saw good reception and already has more than 8000 bookings.
3. The MiY platform is proving to be a significant differentiator for the company as compared to the rest of the market. 90% of Meteor bookings were from the MiY app.
4. Online inquiries have risen 7 times YoY while conversion rate has also improved to 12-13% from 2-3% previously.
5. Demand slowly rising up with bookings in Oct surpassing last year’s levels at 125k bookings.
6. The company produced around 72000 units in Oct.
7. VECV volumes were down 28% YoY which is much better than the industry average of 46% YoY decline. This led to an increase in overall market share to 20.6% vs 13.6% a year ago.
8. The company plans to introduce a new model each quarter for the next few years.
9. The company added 6 new international exclusive stores in Cambodia, Costa Rica, Mexico, UK and Thailand.
10. Average selling price improved YoY mainly on the back of price hikes od Rs 3000 in Bullet and Rs 2000 in others.
11. The management has stated that the core market for Meteor is the 100-150cc motorcycle segment in India.
12. The management also believes that the new Meteor model will be able to capture a different type of customers who have so far stayed away from the retro-looking models of RE.
13. The margin contraction in H1FY21 was mainly due to operating deleverage and BSVI transition.
14. The margins are expected to improve going forward as operating leverage kicks in and cost rationalization efforts bear fruit.
15. The company has already done Capex of Rs 200 Cr in the year so far and will be doing Rs 400-500 Cr for the whole of the year.
16. There are signs of revival in the CV market and the management holds a positive outlook for the segment in H2.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses and a swift comeback in both segments. This is evident from the fact that despite revenue and volumes declines, both of these divisions have gained market share in their respective industry segments and declined less than their respective segments. The company has seen a good response to the MiY platform which has transformed the company’s online presence and conversion. The launch of the Meteor model was also very timely and is expected to expand the company’s portfolio and capture the huge 100-150cc market. The company still faces the major challenges plaguing the industry like how long will demand take to normalize for the auto industry and whether there any more disruptions in store in the future from COVID-19. It remains to be seen whether the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry and how its various initiatives like studio stores and Make Your Own platforms pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q1 FY21 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company had a dismal quarter with a 63% fall in consolidated revenues and a negative PBT due to losses in VECV.
   2. Volumes for Q1 was at 58,000 a change of 68% YoY.
   3. EBITDA margins for Q1 shrank to 0.2%.
   4. The company launched new variants of Bullet 350 & Classic 350.
   5. The company added 38 new studio stores in the quarter bringing the total locations up to 1559.
   6. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles and a market share of 29.6% in the 125+ cc category.
   7. Export sales have risen from 96% YoY to 38700 units in FY20.
   8. The number of international stores has risen to 82 stores in 21 countries and the company plans to bring this up to 100 by the end of FY21.
   9. The total CV volumes sold in Q1 were at 2,129 units.
   10. The market share of VECV in the domestic 3.5-15 ton segment is at 29.5%.
   11. The market share in buses excluding exports increased to 35.6% from 15.3% a year ago.
   12. The market share in the heavy-duty segment increased to 7%.
   13. VECV saw a loss of Rs 120 Cr in the period.
   14. VECV market including exports increased to 23.1% in Q1FY21 from 12.7% a year ago.
   15. The company also announced an incoming stock split of 10 times to take place on 25^th August 2020.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The company saw a good recovery in motorcycles since opening up but the demand for CVs remains weak.
2. The export market for Re was down 64% YoY and export volumes were at only 3,400 units in Q1.
3. The company added 5 exclusive stores and 32 multi-branded outlets in several countries in France, Brazil, Indonesia, Mexico, Germany, U.K., Australia, New Zealand, Colombia.
4. Digital engagement with customers has risen 3-4 times since COVID-19.
5. Interceptor was the best-selling motorcycle in the U.K. for the month of June in the whole industry.
6. The company acquired the entire business of Volvo Buses in India.
7. The management believes that this acquisition provides the company with the best portfolio in the country from heavy-duty and premium buses all the way to light, medium-duty and mass-market or value segment buses.
8. The company launched India’s first 54-tonne gross combination weight 4×2 tractor-trailer. It also launched an all-new and wider Eicher Skyline bus, which introduces Volvo Group’s engine platform.
9. All CVs sold after 22^nd July will be 100% connected with advanced telematics and the company is offering a 2-year subscription to this telematics which the company provides and free uptime services.
10. All 9 units for VECV production have started working and are at utilization of 25% currently. The company plans to scale up production as demand comes back.
11. The management has stated that the capacity constraint for the company today is not in production but in the supply chain.
12. The company has crossed 100 outlets in the USA and has a small 2.5% market share here. The company is also looking to expand rapidly in emerging areas like APAC and LATAM while also looking to expand slowly in long shot areas like Africa. In the long term, the company’s goal is to have at least 20% of sales from exports.
13. The gross margin for the company has been down largely due to a one-off incentive scheme which was put in post restart after lockdown.
14. As with all companies affected due to COVID-19. EML has also had the opportunity to look deep internally and work towards improving internal costs and efficiencies which are expected to enhance profitability in the long term according to the management.
15. The launch schedule for the company has been delayed from April to August or September and the company stands ready to ramp up production as soon as the supply chain issues get resolved.
16. The company will be going ahead with its planned launch schedule for the year from Q2 onwards.
17. The booking rate and inquiries are almost at pre-COVID levels. The majority of these are from smaller cities and towns while major cities are underperforming at the moment.
18. There is no debt incoming from the new Volvo Buses acquisition. VECV is seeing good interest in its BSVI offerings. All the BSVI cost increases have been passed on in all products of VECV.
19. The gap between booking and production is between 40,000 to 45,000 units at the moment.
20. The source of supply chain issues for the company and largely the industry were the lockdowns in key production corridors of Aurangabad, Pune and Chennai in the past month.
21. At present, around 90% of dealerships are open for the company.
22. The company does not see financing as a challenge for sales of its products.
23. Given no supply chain constraints, the management believes that the company can reach pre-COVID production levels within 2 weeks.
24. The management expects the recovery to be faster in export markets.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses despite the massive auto sector slowdown which was exacerbated by COVID-19. This is evident from the fact that despite revenue and volumes declines, both of these divisions have gained market share in their respective industry segments and declined less than their respective segments. The company has seen a good recovery in demand which is evident from the number of inquiries & bookings coming back to pre-COVID levels. The company still faces the major challenges plaguing the industry like how long will demand to normalize for the auto industry and whether there any more disruptions in store in the future from COVID-19. It remains to be seen whether the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry and how its various initiatives like studio stores and Make Your Own platforms pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q4 FY20 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company had a dismal quarter with an 11% fall in consolidated revenues and a 45% decline in PBT.
   2. Volumes for FY20 fell 15% YoY.
   3. EBITDA margins for FY20 shrank to 24.3% from 30.1% a year ago.
   4. The dealer network expanded to 1521 including 600 studio stores from 915 a year ago.
   5. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles and a market share of 26.6% in the 125+ cc category.
   6. Export sales have risen from 96% YoY to 38700 units in FY20.
   7. The number of international stores has risen to 77 stores in 21 countries in FY20 from 42 stores in 18 countries a year ago.
   8. The company remains a zero debt company. The net cash position of the company is at Rs 6762 Cr.
   9. The digital configurator has been implemented where customers can customize a motorcycle on an in-store tablet and place the order directly to the manufacturing plant with real-time updates via email at each stage.
   10. The solutions business which includes the sale of accessories and apparel & servicing and maintenance and warranty of bikes has risen over the years and now accounts for 11.9% of total revenues in FY20.
   11. The market share of VECV in the domestic 3.5-15 ton segment is at 29.5%.
   12. In VECV, sales volumes declined 33% YoY in FY20 against an industry drop of 40%.
   13. The market share in the heavy-duty segment increased to 5.9%.
   14. Overall revenues for VECV were down 35% YoY in Q4 with a loss of Rs 26 Cr in the period.
   15. VECV market including exports increased to 14.6% in FY20 from 13.1% a year ago.
   16. The company also announced an incoming stock split of 10 times.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The management stated that almost 2/3rds of all vehicles sold in Q4 were BSVI compliant.
2. The management has stated that around 90% of its dealerships are open post lockdown and bookings are back to pre-COVID levels.
3. The company saw a few one-offs due to volatility in forex particularly in Latin America & Brazil in Q4. The total impact of one-offs in Q4 was Rs 50 Cr.
4. The management has clarified that the voucher scheme is not based on discounting but on extended warranty and thus it is not damaging to sales.
5. The company has also increased all prices by Rs 3000 due to BSVI. The management has stated that this price increase has not had any adverse impact on demand.
6. The management has stated that the customer set consists majorly of upgrade buyers still. First-time buyers consist of only 10% and replacement is almost 5%.
7. The company will continue with studio store expansion as these stores cost the only 1/10^th of normal store setup costs. Thus in current uncertain times, the company is looking to expand its network in a more prudent and cost-effective way.
8. The company is planning to add at least 600 more studio stores in FY21.
9. The capacity utilization right now is at 40%.
10. The CAPEX for FY21 is expected to be lower than FY20 since most of the big projects are done and no new capacity is to be added for at least 2 years. Total Capex should be under Rs 500 Cr for FY21.
11. The management has stated that at a blended level, there are still some costs that have not been passed on to customers and will be done so in the near future.
12. The management has stated that the company will remain in the midsized and above CC market and will not look into commuter bikes. This is because the company has had a long-established brand image and are comfortable in their niche of making new markets for their new products like in the case of the Twins and Himalayan.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company saw impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses despite the general auto sector slowdown. This is evident from the fact that despite revenue and volumes declines, both of these divisions have gained market share in their respective industry segments and declined less than their respective segments. The company has also done well to maintain robust export growth in the year with 96% YoY rise in export volumes. The company still faces the major challenges plaguing the industry like the likely disruption from BSVI transition and general economic uncertainty from COVID-19. It remains to be seen whether the company will be able to keep outperforming the industry and how its various initiatives like studio stores and Make Your Own platforms pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q3 2020 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company had a muted quarter with a 0.7% rise in consolidated revenues and an 18.4% decline in PBT.
   2. Volumes for 9MFY20 fell 14.4% YoY.
   3. EBITDA margins for 9M shrank to 25.4% from 30.8% a year ago.
   4. The dealer network expanded to 939 from 858 a year ago.
   5. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles and a market share of 25.7% in the 150+ cc category.
   6. Production ramp-up is underway in phase 2 of their Vallam Vadagal plant.
   7. The company has set up 500 studio stores till December 2019 so far. It plans to establish 1700 stores (Total) in 1400 towns across India by the end of FY20.
   8. The company also plans to increase exclusive international store count from the current figure of 67 to 90 over the next 12 months.
   9. In VECV, total volumes fell 28.6% YoY to 37,092 in 9MFY20. Total revenues fell 23.4% YoY in the same period.
   10. EBITDA margins for VECV fell to 5.7% in 9MFY20 from 8.3% a year ago.
   11. Despite a decline in both volumes and revenues, VECV has seen market share rise to 14.5% in 9MFY20 from 13% a year ago.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. Sales volumes for the quarter were down 2% YoY while exports grew significantly to around 8400, mainly on the back of good demand for the Twins and the Himalayan.
2. The management was satisfied with the company’s performance as the company had vastly outperformed the industry with a fall of only 5% vs an industry decline of 23%. This saw the company gain market share from 26% to 32%.
3. The company has added 500 studio stores so far and aims to bring this number up to 750 by the end of the year.
4. The company has also launched a customization platform called Make Your Own, allowing the customer to build their own bike using whatever array of paint colours that we have to, accessories and so on so that they don’t have to waste time or money doing it in the aftermarket.
5. The management has mentioned that some of the segments of VECV have seen demand coming back on account of prebuying before BSVI transition. The company is working towards reducing its stock of BSIV vehicles as the deadline of 31^st March approaches.
6. The management feels that the company is suitably prepared for the BSVI transition with a wide range of BSVI engine offerings like 2-liter, 3-liter, nearly 4-liter, 5-liter, and 8-liter diesel-powered engines as well as 2 CNG-powered engines.
7. The management has stated that there is indeed seasonality in export markets where sales of motorcycles drop from October to December and start picking up after February.
8. The management expects all of its motorcycle production to move to the BSVI platforms by the end of the month.
9. The company has around 2-3 weeks of inventory at present. The inventory of BSIV stock is around 10 days.
10. The management has stated that in the short term margins will definitely be affected by raw metal prices after the advent of BSVI and it should stabilize in the medium term. This is an industry-wide phenomenon and not specific to the company.
11. The management has mentioned that the price rise was necessitated by BSVI advent and it has seen no indication of a drop in demand due to this action. The company continues to have bookings higher than dispatches even in the current environment.
12. The management has refrained from providing any sustainable figure for the run rate for 650 series and has stated that it will wait till May to understand current market dynamics and arrive at a reasonable figure.
13. The management has mentioned that the breakeven point for the studios is around 7-8 vehicles per month and it feels that this format helps the company achieve deeper penetration while providing valuable after-sales services which are good for the brand and the company.
14. The management has refrained from providing any projections of growth post BSVI but it feels that the industry should see a modest revival of around 5% in the coming year.
15. The management has maintained that the margins have not been diluted due to the launch of lower-priced variants and the lower prices have been offset by corresponding cost reductions.
16. The company will keep the capacity of 650 series at the current level of 5000 and will wait to observe to see the full impact of BSVI before thinking of expanding this capacity.
17. The company will not be moving the 500 cc models into BSVI as the management believe that the 650 series is more than adequate to cover the demand in this segment.
18. Around 1/3^rd of the volumes sold in January were BSVI compliant.
19. The management has stated that the company will stay in the air-cooled model engine design as it is an integral part of the brand image and it will continue to stay in this till regulations state otherwise.
20. The management expects H1FY21 to be flat for VECV mainly due to the industry disruption caused by the BSVI transition.
21. The Make Your Own system has received a good response and has already seen sales of more than 600 vehicles in the past month. The sales through this route have doubled each month in the last 3 months. The order to manufacturing time in this route is only 24 hours and then the product is directly dispatched.
22. In the customer profile for the 650 series, the company has seen around 60% of them upgrading from RE while 40% are from outside.
23. The management has mentioned that the 650 series has been very well received all across the world and thus exports for these bikes has risen 120% YoY in the period of 9MFY20. This is also the result of the company’s efforts to build export channels and sales teams over the past few years.
24. The management has reiterated that the company’s goal is to become one of the top 3 players in the midsized segment in each market that it enters.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. The company is seeing impressive industry outperformance in both the RE and VECV businesses. This is evident from the fact that despite revenue and volumes declines, both of these divisions have gained market share in their respective industry segments. The company has also done well to maintain robust export growth in the year so far with exports expected to rise from February onwards as seasonal sales decline goes away. The company still faces the major challenges plaguing the industry like the likely disruption from BSVI transition and the raw material price volatility from the disruption in China. It remains to be seen whether the company will be able to maintain its promise of outperforming the industry and how its various initiatives like studio stores and Make Your Own platforms pan out in the future. Nonetheless, given its resilient performance in its various segments and the strong brand and industry position of the company, Eicher Motors remains a critical stock to watch out for every auto sector investor.

Q2 2020 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company had a muted quarter with a 7% decline in consolidated revenues and a 27% decline in PBT.
   2. PAT rose 4% YoY mainly on account of lower tax expenses.
   3. Volumes for the quarter fell 17% YoY in H1FY20.
   4. EBITDA margins for H1 shrank to 25.5% from 31.5% a year ago. The EBITDA margin for Q2 was at 25% which is the lowest since FY15.
   5. The dealer network expanded to 932 from 858 a year ago.
   6. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles.
   7. Market share in the 150+ CC segment fell to 23.5% from 24.7% a year ago.
   8. Production has commenced in phase 2 of their Vallam Vadagal plant. The company is also ramping up production of its new models of Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650.
   9. The company has set up 500 studio stores till October 2019 so far. It plans to establish 1500 stores (Total) in 1200 towns across India by the end of FY20.
   10. The company also plans to increase exclusive international store count from the current figure of 57 to 80 over the next 12 -18 months.
   11. In VECV, total volumes fell 29.4% YoY to 24701 in H1FY20. Total revenues fell 23.6% YoY in the same period.
   12. EBITDA margins for VECV fell to 5.4% in H1FY20 from 9.1% a year ago.
   13. Despite decline in both volumes and revenues, VECV has seen market share rise to 13.9% in H1 from 12.7% a year ago.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The exports for the company have been very good with 12700 vehicles exported in the quarter. This is 1.6 times the number exported in Q2FY19.
2. The company added 9 new international stores in the quarter.
3. The management has asserted that the company stands ready for the BS-VI transition.
4. The company has seen a good response in the 3.5 to the 5-ton truck category where its market share has risen to 31% from 25%.
5. Depending on the location, the company expects monthly sales of 8 to 10 bikes from each studio store. Not only sales but also these spots will  act as service centers thus bringing in additional revenue.
6. The management has refrained from giving any comments on price increases with the BS-VI transition.
7. Financing levels have been higher at 59% in Q2 as opposed to 54% in last quarter.
8. The setup of each studio store is such that it is at least 20-40 km away from a mainstream dealer store so as to prevent any cannibalization. The breakeven level for each studio store is roughly 8 bikes per month.
9. The management aims to add around 200-300 studio stores by March.
10. The management has guided that the company will do less Capex in FY21 than it has done in the past few years as it has been building up capacity in the tech centers and product development which is already done.
11. The current Capex for FY20 shall be the same as guided in Q1 which is Rs 700 Cr.
12. The management believes that the main reason behind the rise in Bullet X sales is not the price reduction as compared to the classic version but the personalization and customization options that appeal more to a customer in this segment.
13. The management maintains that the current festive season sales numbers have been the best the company has ever seen and it is easily >10% rise from festive sales last year.
14. The inventory level (dealer+company+goods-in-transit) is at < 3 weeks according to the management.
15. The management have stated that the Twins products have seen a good response in export markets and have remained at similar levels as Q1 in the domestic market.
16. The management attributes the fall in margins to the changing product mix.
17. The management maintains that the company stands ready to ramp up production of the Twins products should demand rise in the coming quarters.
18. The management has refrained from providing any specific margin guidance but they maintain that they will continue to outperform the industry in this front.
19. The company is still in the growth stage in many of its export markets and so the management does not expect any big rise in exports until the distribution network is expanded in these markets.
20. The company has seen good sales in the North and West parts of India and states like UP have done better sales than Maharashtra. The company has also seen higher penetration of the extended warranty program than expected.
21. The management has admitted that a decrease in steel prices would be beneficial for them but have refrained from commenting on any specific increase it may have on margins.
22. The management has clarified that along with raw material price decrease, many other competitors have also instituted selling price increases which may have contributed to margin expansion for many players. While this was not the case for Eicher Motors.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. Currently, the sales of the company have stagnated and margins have fallen a bit for the Royal Enfield and the VECV JV. The main cause for this has been the demand slowdown in the broad auto industry. The fall in volumes is less than the industry declines indicating the strength of the company’s brands. The studio initiative seems to be working well for the company and is expected to help provide penetration and support in underpenetrated areas in the country and enhance the company brand accessibility and reach. The export demand is also looking up for the company which highlights the demand and durability for the company’s brands internationally. It remains to be seen how long will it take for the company to get back to its growth path and whether it will be able to do so before the industry revival and steal a march on its major competitors. Nonetheless, based on its brand resilience and dominant market share in its segment, Eicher Motors remains one of the prime auto sector stocks in the country today.

Q1 2020 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company had a muted quarter with a 4% decline in consolidated revenues and 22% decline in PAT.
   2. Volumes for the quarter fell 19% YoY in Q1FY20.
   3. EBITDA margins shrank to 25.9% from 32.3% a year ago.
   4. Dealer network expanded to 928 from 837 a year ago.
   5. The company still enjoys a market share of more than 90% in its segment of 250cc+ motorcycles.
   6. The company is setting up phase 2 of their Vallam Vadagal plant to ramp up capacity. They are also ramping up production of their new models of Interceptor 650 and Continental GT 650.
   7. Capex planned for FY20 is around Rs 700 Cr.
   8. In VECV, total volumes fell 18% YoY to 13331 in Q1FY20. Total revenues fell 14% YoY.
   9. EBITDA margins for VECV fell to 5.6% in Q1FY20 from 9.2% a year ago.
   10. The company is planning a new plant set up in Bhopal which would add 40,000 in overall capacity. This plant is expected to commence commercial production from April 2020 onwards. The planned capital outlay for this plant is around Rs 400 Cr.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. Exports for the quarter were up to 9600 from 5600 last quarter mainly on the back of good response to the Twins models from international markets.
2. The company added 13 stores in India in this quarter. They also added 6 international stores and entered South Korea, Brazil, Indonesia, Vietnam, and Argentina.
3. The company is on track for the upcoming BS-VI regulations and they plan to bring their pre-BS-VI stock levels to zero by 31^st March 2020.
4. In VECV, the company saw a decline in volumes and revenues mainly due to the general economic slowdown and EBITDA margins fell as discounting continues at all-time high levels.
5. VECV is on track for BS-VI and they have also unveiled their new compliant light duty platform Pro 2000 for this.
6. The management expects a pickup in the CV industry with the onset of the festive season and a bit of prebuying in Q4FY20 before the BS-VI regulations kick in.
7. At the start of the year, the company had planned to work towards a production capacity of 950,000 but the demand slowdown has led them to stay put and monitor the situation. They will plan for this expansion depending on how the economic and industry unfolds in the near future.
8. The company has planned to set up 500 studio stores at the start of the year to enhance walk-ins and enable greater conversion. They expect to have these stores operational by the end of Q2FY20.
9. The waiting period for the Twins models in India is around 3-4 months. The company has already ramped up production to 5000 to keep up with the demand.
10. The management has clarified that they do not have any plans currently to make a 250cc product.
11. The channel inventory level currently is at less than 1 month. The company has worked to keep it down to help provide some relief to dealers in the current low demand environment.
12. The management has refrained from providing any guidance on demand but they are making all the efforts they can to enhance and generate additional demand. This is evident from their plans for the studio stores.
13. The vintage stores initiative is not doing well for the company mainly because the sourcing of old Royal Enfield bikes is proving difficult for the company. The company will continue to operate the current vintage stores and start moving here once things lookup.
14. The management does not expect any extra promotional expenses other than the normal run rate.
15. The company has seen softening of raw materials in the last 4-5 months and they expect to see this to continue as long as overall world demand remains soft.
16. The company is investing a lot in seeding efforts as a lot of their market shares are concentrated in a few urban settings where they recognize that incremental sales will require a lot of extended efforts. Thus they are working to expand their network as much as possible and are focusing on newer concept products like the Himalayan and Twins models for mature markets.
17. Top 20 cities form 25% of the total demand for RE.
18. With the studio stores, the company is basically pushing into markets where the motorcycle market is high but the company presence is low due to lack of access to sales and servicing. Thus the company hopes to penetrate semi-urban markets where there may be underlying demand for their products.
19. The company sees 95% of all customers as new ones while only 5% are replacement customers. Around 1/3^rd of all customers would be graduating from commuter bikes to RE while the majority of customers would be moving up from the 150cc+ segment.
20. The management believes that on demand revival, the company sales shall rise faster than the market mainly because they are an aspirational brand.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest-rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. Currently, the sales of the company have stagnated and margins have fallen a bit for the Royal Enfield and the VECV JV. The main cause for this has been the demand slowdown in the broad auto industry. The company still has robust exports and has been preparing to expand into newer markets both domestic and abroad. It remains to be seen how fast the company can expand successfully into newer regions and bring back sales growth and how long the industry demand slowdown shall continue to remain. Nonetheless, being an aspirational brand, the company should see a faster rise and revival should demand comes back to the industry. Thus given their strong product portfolio, aspirational brand value and their dominant status in their industry segment, Eicher Motors remains a good stock to watch out for, particularly given their recent fall in the share price.

Q4 2019 Updates

Financial Results & Highlights

* Includes exceptional item of impairment loss of Rs 312 Cr in Eicher Polaris Pvt Ltd.

**Includes Loss of Rs 187 Cr from Eicher Polaris Pvt Ltd.

***Includes Loss of Rs 220 Cr from Eicher Polaris Pvt Ltd.

Detailed Results

1. 1. The company saw a muted Q4 performance with sales growth of just over 1%.
   2. The Royal Enfield division maintained an EBITDA margin of more than 30%.
   3. The quarterly EBITDA margins have fallen to 27.8% in Q4FY19 from 32.3% in Q1FY19.
   4. The company still enjoys more than 90% market share in the 250cc-750cc motorcycle segment.
   5. The commercial vehicles JV has a market share of 29.4% in 4.9 to 15 ton commercial vehicles category.
   6. In order to rejuvenate sales in the domestic segment, the company has launched special versions of their flagship Bullet, Classic and Thunderbird motorcycles.
   7. They have also launched the Interceptor 650 & Continental GT 650 models in FY19 to expand and develop their brand overseas.
   8. The company’s volumes have stagnated with only 0.4% volume growth in FY19.
   9. The company has added 90 new dealerships in the last financial year to bring total dealer count up to 915 currently.
   10. The company states that there is still room for opportunity for Royal Enfield as its segment of 250cc-750cc motorcycles is the only segment in the motorcycle industry globally that is growing. The other segments of <250cc and >750cc are both in decline. Thus the room to grow for the company should be through overseas sales.
   11. The company plans to double their exclusive international store count to 42 in the next 18-24 months. They also plan to reach 1000 domestic dealer count by the end of FY20.
   12. The company is targeting a production plan of 950,000 motorcycles in FY20. This can be difficult to achieve since the total sales of the company has stagnated at around 820,000 in FY18 and FY19.
   13. The company is also planning a capex of up to Rs 700 Cr for phase 2 of their Vallam Vadagal plant, construction of a new technology centre, development of new products and to expand Royal Enfield to global markets.
   14. In VECV, total CV volumes for the year grew 9.64% in FY19 with exports rising more than 11% and Volvo trucks volumes rising 16%.
   15. The 5-15 tonne truck volumes grew 14.5% while the 15+ tonne truck volumes grew only 7% in FY19. Bus volumes stayed stagnant with only 2% growth in FY19.
   16. The total FY19 revenues for VECV grew 15% while profit growth was negligible. EBITDA margins fell to 8.4% in FY19 as compared to 9% in FY18.
   17. The JV has commenced construction of its new plant with annual capacity of 40,000 units. This project is expected to stay on track with production expected to start from April 2020. The planned capital outlay for this is around Rs 400 Cr.
   18. The Eicher Engineering Components division achieved annual revenues of Rs 1008 Cr in FY19.

Investor Conference Call Highlights

1. The normalised PAT for Q4 was down 16% YoY and normalised PAT for FY19 was up only 2% YoY.
2. Motorcycle sales volumes for Q4 were down 13% YoY.
3. The expenses have seen sharp increase in last quarter due to cost of upgrading the entire fleet of motorcycles to Anti-Braking System (ABS).
4. The company is optimistic that they will be able to deliver on selling their production target in FY20.
5. The management believes that inventory is at comfortable levels and it is led by dealer demand.
6. For the new 650cc bikes, the company expects the domestic to exports sales mix to be equal. They also expect production to be at around 5000 units per month for these bikes. The current booking period for these bikes is 4 months in India.
7. The sales for these new bikes has been around 1800 in the last one month.
8. The company is confident of meeting the BS VI norms and assert that they do not need to make wholesale changes in their engines to comply with the new norms.
9. In the medium to long term, the management firmly believes in the shift towards premiumization in the motorcycle market. They also believe that they can certainly add value for customer in other ways like apparel, accessories and select experiences like rides rather than just price reduction.

Analyst’s View

Eicher Motors has been one of the highest rated auto companies in India. This was mainly on the back of their successful turnaround of Royal Enfield and the emergence of the mid-sized (250cc-750cc) motorcycle market. But currently the company’s sales volumes have stagnated over the last year with less than 1% growth in sales volumes. Despite the dominant market share of more than 90% in its segment, the company is struggling to maintain their previous growth rate which had seen them become one of the investment world’s darlings. Thus the challenge ahead for the company is to find ways to achieve sales for their production target of 950,000 and to expand their brand and offerings to international markets where they hope to replicate the same meteoric rise that they have shown in the domestic market over the last decade. Thus, Eicher Motors remains an exciting idea for investors to evaluate. While the past track record gives a lot of confidence to investors, it remains to be seen how Eicher deals with its biggest challenge of slowing growth at high base.

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