Hero MotoCorp eyes sustainable growth post-Covid, back to pre-pandemic margins

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Hero MotoCorp, having restored its margins to pre-Covid levels, is now focused on achieving sustainable growth. The company aims to boost its market share across various segments through the introduction of new products in the coming quarters, as stated by a senior company executive, reported PTI. The nation's leading two-wheeler manufacturer is actively working on increasing its production capacity to facilitate the launch of the highly-anticipated Harley-Davidson X440, which has already garnered more than 25,000 bookings.

Reportedly, the company is also progressing as planned to launch its electric vehicle range in 100 cities by the end of this year, with a primary emphasis on achieving a dominant position in this sector. "The ICE (internal combustion engine) business margins are now 14.5 per cent. Effectively, it means that we are back to pre-Covid levels which were around 14 per cent," Hero MotoCorp CEO Niranjan Gupta said in an analyst call.

Moving forward, now that the company has restored its margins to pre-Covid levels, its exclusive focus will be on growth and expanding its market share. This will be driven by a series of recent and upcoming product launches in the coming quarters, as stated by the executive. During the Covid period and with the cost inflation, the margins had got down to around 11.5 per cent, Gupta noted.

Hero MotoCorp currently holds a retail market share of approximately 35 percent in the domestic market. During the April-June quarter, the company recorded consolidated figures of ₹701 crore in net profit and ₹8,851 crore in revenue. Gupta mentioned that with more than 25,000 bookings already received for the Harley-Davidson X440, the company must increase its capacity and meet the rising