Shares of Hindustan Construction Company NSE -4.76 % (HCC) hit the lower circuit in the early trade on Thursday after poor performance in the March 2021 quarter.

The construction firm reported 49.48 per cent decline in net profit at Rs 157.28 crore for the quarter ended March 31, 2021. The company had clocked a profit of Rs 311.38 crore in the same quarter previous year.

HCC shares were locked in the lower circuit of 5 per cent at Rs 13.03, in an otherwise stronger market. BSE Sensex was trading at 52,566.42, 260 points or 0.50 per cent higher at the time of writing this report. The counter settled at Rs 13.71 on Wednesday.

Total income during the quarter under review stood at Rs 2,398.38 crore compared with Rs 2,376.68 crore in the year-ago period. Total expenses increased to Rs 2,618.48 crore from Rs 2,366.13 crore a year ago.

HCC shares have gained 50 per cent in the last one year and the counter is up by 32 per cent in 2021 so far. In the last one month, the counter has posted double digit gains.

For the full year 2020-21, the company recorded a loss of Rs 610.02 crore on a consolidated basis. It had posted a profit of Rs 197.03 crore in 2019-20. The operations of the group have started recovering from the economic slowdown caused by the pandemic and reaching normalcy, the company said.