Rating Rationale
December 02, 2019 | Mumbai
Pearl Global Industries Limited
Ratings downgraded to 'CRISIL BB+/Stable/CRISIL A4+'
 
Rating Action
Total Bank Loan Facilities Rated Rs.396 Crore
Long Term Rating CRISIL BB+/Stable (Downgraded from 'CRISIL BBB-/Stable')
Short Term Rating CRISIL A4+ (Downgraded from 'CRISIL A3')
1 crore = 10 million
Refer to annexure for Details of Instruments & Bank Facilities
Detailed Rationale

CRISIL has downgraded its ratings on the bank facilities of Pearl Global Industries Limited (PGIL; part of the PGIL group) to 'CRISIL BB+/Stable/CRISIL A4+' from 'CRISIL BBB-/Stable/CRISIL A3'.
 
The downgrade reflects expected moderation in the cushion between cash accrual and repayment obligation over the medium term. Higher-than-anticipated debt has resulted in significant gearing and moderation in debt protection metrics, though the financial risk profile remains moderate. Further, company has undertaken significant unplanned capex in fiscal 2019 which has largely been funded by cash accruals, leading to lower accruals available for debt repayment or incremental working capital requirements. Additionally, company will avail long term debt in current fiscal to meet its working capital requirements as against the capex done in last year. The downgrade also factors in slower-than-expected ramp-up in operations at the new manufacturing units, which is expected to constrain the business.
 
The ratings continue to reflect the longstanding relationship with key brands and established position in the readymade garments industry, and a moderate financial risk profile. These strengths are partially offset by exposure to volatility in raw material prices and susceptibility to risks regarding ramp-up of operations at the new facilities.

Analytical Approach

For arriving at its ratings, CRISIL has combined the business and financial risk profiles of PGIL and its subsidiaries: Pearl Apparel Fashions Ltd (formerly, Lerros Fashions India Ltd), Norp Knit Industries Ltd (Bangladesh), Pearl Global (HK) Ltd (Hong Kong), Pearl Global Fareast Ltd (Hong Kong), Pixel Industries Ltd (India), along with their step-down subsidiaries. All these companies are collectively referred to as the PGIL group.

Please refer Annexure - List of entities consolidated, which captures the list of entities considered and their analytical treatment of consolidation.

Key Rating Drivers & Detailed Description
Strengths:
* Established position in the readymade garments industry
Benefits from the promoters' industry experience of about three decades and their established relationship with suppliers and customers should continue to support the business. The company supplies readymade garments to large, established brands such as GAP, Kohl's, Kmart, Esprit, and Gerry Weber International among others. Presence in India, Bangladesh, Indonesia, Hong Kong and Vietnam leads to better control on procurement, marketing, and finance, and ensures quality of output.
 
* Moderate financial risk profile
Higher-than-anticipated capital expenditure (capex) and revamping undertaken in fiscal 2019 led to sizeable debt, but the gearing was low at 0.72 time as on March 31, 2019. The interest coverage ratio was 2.72 times in fiscal 2019. In the absence of any major capex plans, the financial risk profile is expected to improve gradually over the medium term.
 
Weaknesses:
* Exposure to volatility in raw material prices
Cotton yarn (of coarser counts), alone accounts for 60% of the operating costs and is the key raw material used for manufacturing fabric. Hence, cotton/cotton yarn prices influence the operating margin of readymade garments manufacturers. Further, cotton is a seasonal commodity and its availability is dependent on the monsoon; timely cotton procurement is critical for players.
 
* Susceptibility to risks regarding ramp-up of operations at the new facilities
Capex programmes have been undertaken at Chennai, Bengaluru, and Gurugram in order to increase manufacturing capacity and cater to rising demand. Also, operations of two small units in Chennai are being consolidated into one. All the newly set-up units are operational now; however, slow ramp up in sales has been exerting pressure on profitability. The stabilisation of operations in the new units and improvement in profitability will remain key rating sensitivity factors.

Liquidity Stretched

Expected net cash accrual of Rs 63 crore and Rs 68 crore, will be sufficient to meet debt obligation of Rs 17 crore and Rs 34 crore, in fiscals 2020 and 2021, respectively. Bank limit utilisation averaged 84% over the 12 months through June 2019. The current ratio was 1.39 times as on March 31, 2019.

Outlook: Stable

CRISIL believes the PGIL group will continue to benefit from its established position in the readymade garments industry and moderate financial risk profile.
 
Rating sensitivity factors
Upward factor
* Improvement in margin by 100 basis points, leading to an increase in cash accrual
* Significant reduction in working capital cycle leading to lower debt levels
 
Downward factor
* Decline in operating income by more than 20% per fiscal
* Fall in the operating profitability margin by 200 basis points
* Larger-than-expected, debt-funded capex, weakening the financial risk profile

About the Group

The PGIL group, established in 1989 by Mr Deepak Seth, manufactures readymade garments, which are supplied to established global retail brands. PGIL is listed on the National Stock Exchange and Bombay Stock Exchange.

Key Financial Indicators
As on/for the period ended March 31   2019 2018
Revenue Rs crore 1757.9 1496.5
Profit after tax (PAT) Rs crore 67.10 23.1
PAT margin % 3.8 1.5
Adjusted debt/Adjusted networth Times 0.72 0.85
Interest coverage Times 3.30 2.0

Any other information: Not applicable

Note on complexity levels of the rated instrument:
CRISIL complexity levels are assigned to various types of financial instruments. The CRISIL complexity levels are available on www.crisil.com/complexity-levels. Users are advised to refer to the CRISIL complexity levels for instruments that they consider for investment. Users may also call the Customer Service Helpdesk with queries on specific instruments.
Annexure - Details of Instrument(s)
ISIN Name of instrument Date of allotment Coupon
rate (%)
Maturity date Issue size
(Rs crore)
Rating assigned 
with outlook
NA Bank Guarantee NA NA NA 7 CRISIL A4+
NA Bill Discounting NA NA NA 17 CRISIL BB+/Stable
NA Export Packing Credit NA NA NA 148 CRISIL BB+/Stable
NA Letter of Credit NA NA NA 153.5 CRISIL A4+
NA Long Term Loan NA NA Apr-20 70.5 CRISIL BB+/Stable
 
Annexure - List of entities consolidated
Names of Entities Consolidated Extent of Consolidation
Pearl Global Industries Limited 100% consolidation
Pearl Apparel Fashions Ltd 100% consolidation
Norp Knit Industries Ltd (Bangladesh) 100% consolidation
Pearl Global (HK) Ltd (Hong Kong) 100% consolidation
Pearl Global Fareast Ltd (Hong Kong) 100% consolidation
Pixel Industries Ltd (India) 100% consolidation
Annexure - Rating History for last 3 Years
  Current 2019 (History) 2018  2017  2016  Start of 2016
Instrument Type Outstanding Amount Rating Date Rating Date Rating Date Rating Date Rating Rating
Fund-based Bank Facilities  LT/ST  235.50 CRISIL BB+/Stable      04-12-18  CRISIL BBB-/Stable/ CRISIL A3  09-11-17  CRISIL BBB/Stable/ CRISIL A3+  22-11-16  CRISIL BBB/Positive/ CRISIL A3+  CRISIL BBB/Stable/ CRISIL A3+ 
Non Fund-based Bank Facilities  LT/ST  160.50 CRISIL A4+      04-12-18  CRISIL A3  09-11-17  CRISIL A3+  22-11-16  CRISIL A3+  CRISIL A3+ 
All amounts are in Rs.Cr.
Annexure - Details of various bank facilities
Current facilities Previous facilities
Facility Amount (Rs.Crore) Rating Facility Amount (Rs.Crore) Rating
Bank Guarantee 7 CRISIL A4+ Bank Guarantee 7 CRISIL A3
Bill Discounting 17 CRISIL BB+/Stable Bill Discounting 17 CRISIL BBB-/Stable
Export Packing Credit 148 CRISIL BB+/Stable Export Packing Credit 158.5 CRISIL BBB-/Stable
Letter of Credit 153.5 CRISIL A4+ Letter of Credit 138.5 CRISIL A3
Long Term Loan 70.5 CRISIL BB+/Stable Long Term Loan 41.72 CRISIL BBB-/Stable
-- 0 -- Packing Credit 30 CRISIL A3
-- 0 -- Proposed Fund-Based Bank Limits 3.28 CRISIL BBB-/Stable
Total 396 -- Total 396 --
Links to related criteria
CRISILs Approach to Financial Ratios
CRISILs Bank Loan Ratings - process, scale and default recognition
Rating criteria for manufaturing and service sector companies
Rating Criteria for Cotton Textile Industry
CRISILs Criteria for Consolidation
CRISILs Criteria for rating short term debt

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