Birla Corporation's September quarter EBITDA up 71%, net profit at Rs 90 crore

Birla Corporation Limited's September quarter consolidated EBITDA jumped 71% over the same period last year to Rs 332 crore, despite subdued cement demand and weak pricing in key markets.

The Company turned in a consolidated net profit of Rs 90 crore for the quarter against a loss of Rs 25 crore in the same period last year, thanks to improved profitability in both Cement and Jute divisions.

The Company's consolidated revenue for the quarter at Rs 2,233 crore represents a 13% year-on-year (yoy) growth as cement sales by volume rose 7% to 4.2 million tons (mt) and Birla Jute Mills staged a turnaround.

Cement sales during the quarter were impacted by excessive rainfall at the Company's footprint areas, subdued prices and market disruptions owing to GST changes in September 2025.

The Company focused on consolidating its market share in all key markets and registered a 7% growth in cement sales by volume, led by its portfolio of premium products. The flagship brand, Perfect Plus, registered a 20% yoy growth in sales by volume, followed by Unique Plus, which grew 28%, albeit on a lower base.

Premium cement accounted for 60% of total sales through the trade channel during the quarter. Sales through the more profitable trade channel were at 79% against 71% in the same period last year.

The sales of blended cement grew 14% by volume over the same period last year, and accounted for 89% of total cement sales during the quarter against 83% a year ago. The key drivers of growth in overall cement sales were Madhya Pradesh and Rajasthan. In these two States, the Company registered a volume growth of 7-11%.

"The Company was able to overcome headwinds from multiple directions to deliver a resilient performance, which boosts confidence in the robustness of our strategies," said Shri Sandip Ghose, Managing Director & CEO.

The overall market scenario remained challenging in line with expectations for the monsoon months. Demand in northern and central India remained stable during the quarter, but due to intense competition, prices in the central region dropped Rs 3-5 per bag.

Demand in the east was weak except in Bihar, where pre-election demand gave a fillip to cement sales. Demand in Maharashtra witnessed an upswing but it didn't help raise prices. In Telangana, prices fell Rs 7-10 per bag.

The reduction in GST has resulted in steep correction in the non-trade segment, with prices falling by Rs 10-15 per bag in the central, western and northern India. Due to the challenging market conditions and depressed prices in the Company's core market in central India, Birla Corporation Limited's realization per ton from cement sales improved only 3% to Rs 4,845, but thanks to improvement in operational efficiency, EBITDA per ton rose to Rs 712, up 54% yoy.

The Cement Division's operating profit margin for the September quarter expanded to 14.7% from 9.8% in the same period a year ago, thanks to a slew of efficiency improvement measures, which remain a continuing priority.

The Company faced some operational disruptions as well, in the form of unplanned shutdowns and intermittent sub-optimal kiln performance, which impacted clinker production. Despite having to purchase clinker to maintain market share, the Company's operating cost (excluding interest) declined 2% from the same period a year ago.

The management of Birla Corporation Limited expects the cement demand to revive in the three months till December, led by Government capex on infrastructure, and translate into yoy volume growth of 4-5% in the December quarter.

Also, the healthy monsoon and higher disposable income in the hands of people should lead to higher spending on rural housing. It is expected that the northern and western regions would drive the recovery in demand, while the southern and eastern regions continue to suffer from a supply overhang.

Realizations, however, are expected to remain largely unchanged: they may go up marginally on improved demand. After a sharp decline in non-trade prices, it is expected that prices will stabilize and slowly firm up on demand pull.

Shares of Birla Corporation Limited was last trading in BSE at Rs. 1214.90 as compared to the previous close of Rs. 1189.35. The total number of shares traded during the day was 7781 in over 920 trades.

The stock hit an intraday high of Rs. 1245.70 and intraday low of 1152.50. The net turnover during the day was Rs. 9312335.00.

Source : Equity Bulls

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BirlaCorporation INE340A01012 Q2FY26 H1FY26 ResultUpdate