Tata Motors disappoints Street with 56% fall in Jan-March profit

Tata Motors Ltd, India's biggest automaker by revenue, reported a drop in quarterly net profit due to a spike in costs despite steady sales of its luxury Jaguar Land Rover unit and an increase in demand for its cars in its home market.

Tata Motors reported a 56 percent fall in net profit to Rs 1,717 crore or Rs 17.17 billion ($268.3 million) for the January-March quarter, compared with Rs 3,918 crore or Rs 39.18 billion a year earlier.

Net sales rose 4 per cent to Rs 67,298 crore 672.98 billion.

Analysts had on average expected a profit of 40.95 billion rupees, according to Thomson Reuters Starmine.