Ford never released financial data for individual carmakers within its Premier Auto Group so apart from a few masked reports here and there we were never able to get proper insight into the financial performance of brands like Jaguar and Land Rover. With India’s Tata finally taking over the two carmakers last week, new details have emerged about their true financial performance over the past 12 months.

According to Tata Managing Director Ravi Kant, the combined businesses of Jaguar and Land Rover made a strong profit last year. Kant also said the combined operations were profitable in each of the four quarters of the year, reports Automotive News.

While Land Rover is "very healthy and profitable," Jaguar was "turning around and is on the cusp of recovery," he revealed. As recently as 2006, Jaguar is thought to have lost more than $700 million, so these are strong statements coming from the Tata exec.

If Jaguar and Land Rover were profitable last year it means Tata got an even better deal buying both carmakers for $2.3 billion than previously thought. However, there are major concerns about new emissions standards the new owners will have to deal with in the near future.