Asian Paints beats Q1 estimates, retains FY27 outlook amid cost, competition risks

Asian Paints reported a stronger-than-expected June-quarter (Q1FY27) performance, but the country's largest paint-maker kept its full-year guidance unchanged as it warned of renewed geopolitical risks and intense competition.

The company said it remains on track for 8-10% demand growth and Ebitda margins of 18-20% this fiscal year, even as chief executive Amit Syngle warned that volatility in crude-linked input costs and heightened competitive pressure remain its biggest concerns.

“I think what is our top worry is the whole area of the renewed conflict, the volatility in raw material prices kind of continues,” Syngle said during a post-earnings investor conference on Wednesday. “When we look at overall, I think our priority is very clear that can we maintain the growth momentum which we have seen today in the last few quarters, which we have been able to kind of really look at. The competitive intensity seems to be all-time high.”

Asian Paints' consolidated net profit attributable to owners of the company rose 40% year-on-year to ₹1,539.3 crore for the quarter ended 30 June, from ₹1,099.8 crore a year earlier, according to the company's stock exchange filing. The figure beat the Bloomberg consensus estimate of ₹1,228.1 crore, based on 23 analyst estimates.

Revenue from operations rose 17.9% to ₹10,541.9 crore, also ahead of the Bloomberg consensus estimate of ₹10,182.9 crore based on 21 analyst estimates.

Asian Paints was the first major paint-maker to report June-quarter earnings. Berger Paints is scheduled to announce its results on 5 August.

Asian Paints' consolidated net profit attributable to owners of the company rose 40% year-on-year to ₹1,539.3 crore for the quarter ended 30 June, from ₹1,099.8 crore a year earlier, according to the company's stock exchange filing. The figure beat the Bloomberg consensus estimate of ₹1,228.1 crore, based on 23 analyst estimates.

Revenue from operations rose 17.9% to ₹10,541.9 crore, ahead of the Bloomberg consensus estimate of ₹10,182.9 crore based on 21 analyst estimates.

Asian Paints was the first major paint-maker to report June-quarter earnings. Berger Paints is scheduled to announce its results on 5 August.

Demand holds, risks remain

Syngle said demand in tier I and tier II cities grew more slowly than expected during the quarter. That weakness was offset by stronger government-led business-to-business projects in larger cities and robust demand in tier III and tier IV markets.

He said easing input costs could create room for price corrections that would help spur demand, while reiterating the company's expectation of 8-10% demand growth for the year.

Despite concerns over input costs stemming from the West Asia conflict, Syngle said the company does not intend to raise prices “unless the situation really becomes alarming.”

Management also retained its profitability outlook despite expecting the second quarter to be seasonally weaker on margins because of product mix.

The paint-maker believes the second quarter has traditionally been a lower-margin period because of its sales mix, but is betting on “a very strong drive in terms of premiumization” to help maintain margins.

“I think we are still garnering around that the guidance of 18-20% in terms of our Ebitda margins holds. We are making a lot of effort with respect to how we galvanize demand, how we look at premiumisation and how we strengthen our cost structures through backward integration, formulations and sourcing,” Syngle said.

Ebitda rose about 34% year-on-year to ₹2,168.76 crore in the April-June quarter. The company reported a 9% volume growth and 16.5% value growth during the quarter.

“Asian Paints' June-quarter results suggest that demand has remained resilient despite successive price hikes, while the management's guidance of 8-10% demand growth for the full year signals confidence in the underlying market. More importantly, despite acknowledging that competition is at an all-time high, the company reiterated its 18-20% margin aspiration, indicating a shift in strategy from prioritizing market share at any cost to balancing growth with profitability,” said Manoj Menon, head of research at ICICI Securities.

Shares of Asian Paints, which reported earnings during market hours, rose as much as 4.43% before ending the session up 0.82%. The benchmark Sensex closed 1.6% higher.