Ambuja Cements (500425) Q2 26/27 earnings summary

Executive summary

• Q2 consolidated cement volume was 16.5 MnT, down 1% YoY; trade share reached 74% and premium products were 37% of trade sales.

• Cement capacity reached 113.5 MTPA after 4.6 MTPA began commercial production; 29.7 MTPA of additions are planned across 14 projects.

Financial highlights

• Q2 consolidated revenue from operations was ₹9,197 Cr, flat YoY; EBITDA was ₹1,271 Cr, down 28%, with a 13.8% margin versus 19.2%.

• Q2 EBITDA per tonne was ₹770, down 27% YoY; excluding the estimated geopolitical impact, EBITDA per tonne was ₹998 and margin was 17.9%.

• Q2 reported PAT was ₹236 Cr versus ₹2,336 Cr YoY; normalized PAT was ₹300 Cr, down 54%, and diluted EPS was ₹0.78.

• H1 revenue was ₹18,697 Cr, down 4% YoY; EBITDA was ₹2,860 Cr, down 23%, and normalized PAT was ₹895 Cr versus ₹1,612 Cr.

• Standalone Q2 revenue rose 10% YoY to ₹6,121 Cr and EBITDA rose 3% to ₹746 Cr; PAT was ₹114 Cr versus ₹1,158 Cr.

Outlook and guidance

• H2 FY27 volume is expected to grow ahead of industry, with further trade-mix improvement; FY27 cement demand growth is projected at 6–7%, while near-term demand is expected to remain soft.

• Cost targets are ₹4,250 per tonne in FY27 and ₹4,000 in FY28; Q2 cost was ₹4,410 per tonne, including an estimated ₹228 per tonne geopolitical impact.

• H2 FY27 capacity additions include 3.2 MTPA ramping up and 2.4 MTPA expected to be commissioned; capacity is targeted at 149 MTPA, with debottlenecking potential to 155 MTPA.

• Premium cement share is targeted at 40% of trade sales, compared with 37% in Q2.

• A proposed stake of 26% or greater in SWE Renewables is intended to enable captive wind power and optimize power costs; share purchases are expected within 15 months, subject to extensions.