Kajaria Ceramics (500233) Q4 20/21 earnings summary

Executive summary

• FY21 began weakly under pandemic restrictions but finished strongly as demand recovered in H2, especially in Tier II and III towns.

• Consolidated revenue was ₹2,780.90 crore, down from ₹2,808.01 crore; profit attributable to owners rose to ₹308.05 crore from ₹255.33 crore.

• Cost optimisation and lower gas prices helped lift EBITDA, margins and cash generation despite disruption during the year.

Financial highlights

• Consolidated revenue from operations was ₹2,780.90 crore in FY21 vs ₹2,808.01 crore in FY20; tiles revenue was ₹2,532.75 crore and other revenue ₹248.15 crore.

• EBITDA rose 22% YoY to ₹508.82 crore from ₹415.90 crore; EBITDA margin increased to 18.30% from 14.81%.

• Consolidated profit attributable to owners increased 21% to ₹308.05 crore from ₹255.33 crore; reported consolidated EPS was ₹19.37 vs ₹16.06.

• Net cash from operating activities rose to ₹508.76 crore from ₹224.43 crore; net worth increased to ₹1,868.86 crore from ₹1,714.27 crore.

• Standalone revenue was ₹2,523.18 crore vs ₹2,571.80 crore; standalone PAT rose to ₹301.75 crore from ₹278.80 crore, with basic EPS of ₹18.98 vs ₹17.54.

Outlook and guidance

• FY22 outlook was constructive, supported by expected Indian GDP growth above 9%, infrastructure investment and a recovery in consumer confidence; the second Covid wave had constrained momentum.

• Metros and Tier I cities were expected to lead FY22 demand; stalled projects, data centres and warehousing were cited as growth avenues, with Tier II and III pent-up demand expected in H2.

• Three brownfield projects at Gailpur, Morbi and Srikalahasti were planned to raise installed tile capacity from 70.4 MSM to 82.8 MSM, with operations expected by FY22-end.

• FY22 priorities: sustain cost optimisation, improve working-capital efficiency and invest in brownfield capacity to meet demand.