Financial Performance Overview

Q2 FY27 Performance (Quarter ended September 30, 2026)

  • Revenue: ₹858 crore (flat vs. ₹861 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • EBITDA: ₹126 crore (down 18% vs. ₹154 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Profit After Tax: ₹85 crore (down 17% vs. ₹102 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Pricing Growth: 5% overall, offset by similar volume de-growth

H1 FY27 Performance (Half year ended September 30, 2026)

  • Revenue: ₹1,880 crore (up 3% vs. ₹1,818 crore in H1 FY26)
  • EBITDA: ₹311 crore (up 2% vs. ₹304 crore in H1 FY26)
  • Profit After Tax: ₹210 crore (up 6% vs. ₹197 crore in H1 FY26)

Segment-wise Performance Q2 FY27

Crop Care Segment

  • Revenue: ₹788 crore (up 4% from ₹760 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • EBITDA: ₹126 crore (down 2% from ₹129 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • PAT: ₹88 crore (up 1% from ₹86 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Price Growth: 6%
Domestic (B2C) Category
  • Revenue: ₹556 crore (down 1% from ₹562 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Price Growth: 5%
  • Volume Decline: 6%

Crop Protection Sub-category:

  • Revenue: ₹457 crore (down 3% from ₹474 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Volume de-growth: 7%

Soil & Plant Health (SPH) Sub-category:

  • Revenue: ₹74 crore (up 22% from ₹61 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Price growth: 15%
  • Volume growth: 7%
  • Driven by increased demand for inorganic manure due to short availability of traditional fertilizers
Institutional (B2B) Category
  • Total Revenue: ₹232 crore (up 17% from ₹198 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Volume growth: 8%
  • Price growth: 9%

Exports Sub-category:

  • Revenue: ₹165 crore (up ~2.5% from ₹161 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Price growth: 10%
  • Challenges: Lower demand for Pendimethalin AI in Europe, pricing challenges from China, constrained raw material availability (Acephate, Hexaconazole), supply chain disruptions, port congestion/logistical challenges

CSM Sub-category:

  • Revenue: ₹27 crore (12x growth from ₹2 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Driven by rebound in PEKK sales volumes

Domestic B2B:

  • Revenue: ₹39 crore (up 11% from ₹35 crore in Q2 FY26)

Seeds Business

  • Revenue: ₹70 crore (down 31% from ₹101 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Volume Decline: 26%
  • EBITDA: ₹0 crore (down from ₹25 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • PAT: ₹(4) crore (down from ₹16 crore in Q2 FY26)
  • Challenges: Paddy & Cotton acreage declined due to lack of water
  • Positive: North Cotton farmers reported higher productivity with healthy prices

Operational and Strategic Updates

Industry Context

  • Deficient and erratic rainfall during 2026 Kharif season (43% of India received ~19% deficient rains)
  • Moisture stress across key agricultural states: Maharashtra, Andhra Pradesh, Karnataka, Telangana, Punjab, Haryana
  • Affected crops: paddy, soybean, maize, cotton, pulses
  • Softer product prices, higher trade discounts, channel inventory pressures
  • Geopolitical disruptions increased energy and freight costs

New Product Launches

Q2 FY27 Launches (4 new products):

  • Silentra (Insecticide)
  • Marcellus (Fungicide)
  • Blitox Super (Fungicide)
  • Trynage (Herbicide)

FY27 Total Launches:

  • 9 new crop care products
  • 15 new seed products including cotton hybrids for North India, herbicide tolerant direct seed rice under Dhaanya Brand

Digital Initiatives

  • Anubandh Edge: Retailer-level digital platform with 60,000+ registered retailers (including Seeds and common retailers) as of September 2026
  • Farmers QR Code: Product knowledge sharing and loyalty program
  • Sampark+: Reached 423,000 farmers through regular engagement
  • SeedSure Application: Enhancing farm-level operations visibility and traceability; developing SeedSure 2.0
  • Idea2Impact Innovation Platform: Received ~42 applications, 2 in pilot stage, 28 under review

R&D and Infrastructure

  • New R&D centre in Navi Mumbai
  • Government liaison completed
  • Likely commissioning: April 2027

Inventory and Working Capital

  • Inventory levels elevated compared to same quarter last year
  • Combination of higher-priced raw material inventory and seed inventory
  • Seed inventory is fresh (harvested March-April 2026)
  • Cash and liquid balance: ₹211 crore as of September 30, 2026
  • Capex: H1 below ₹20 crore; H2 expected to be higher prioritizing growth initiatives

Management Outlook and Commentary

Rabi 2026-27 Outlook

  • Sensitive to winter rainfall, soil moisture, and irrigation availability
  • IMD northeast monsoon forecast: 88-112% of long-period average (relevant to southern peninsular India)
  • Major reservoirs at 70% capacity (below 10-year average of 76.6%)
  • Government Rabi MSP increases for 2027-28: 0.97% for wheat to 10.32% for safflower

Strategic Priorities

  • Accelerating priority brand growth through market execution and phygital engagement
  • Crop Care: Strengthening go-to-market strategy, expanding customer reach, optimizing product portfolio
  • Seeds: Focus on five strategic crops (Cotton, Maize, Millet, Mustard, Rice)
  • Improving capital efficiency across fixed and working capital

Market Challenges

  • Illegal seeds estimated at 25-30% of cotton market
  • Cotton acreage declined from 13 million hectare peak to 10-10.5 million hectare
  • China remains aggressive competitor in export markets
  • Supply chain disruptions adding 2-4 weeks delivery delays
  • Working capital stress observed among smaller players

Q&A Session Highlights

Sales Returns and Channel Inventory

  • Majority of kharif-related sales returns completed
  • No extra channel inventory - disciplined market-based approach
  • Provisions made for remaining returns

Seeds Business Outlook

  • Carry forward inventory adequate for 2027 kharif season
  • Pricing improvement dependent on monsoon forecast and sentiments
  • Cotton price increases capped by government

Export Challenges

  • Deliberate volume reduction to optimize margins and ensure domestic supply
  • Freight costs increased due to Red Sea disruptions
  • Serving dedicated customers with early order planning

Raw Material Cost

  • Low-cost inventory benefit realized in Q1, not Q2
  • Could not pass on cost increases due to demand weakness

Regional Performance

  • Southern states contribution not quantified in call
  • Export markets primarily Americas (US, Brazil), expanding to ASEAN and Africa

Demand Outlook

  • Q3 demand patterns: Wheat normal, rice challenging in water-scarce areas, maize area normal
  • Herbicide demand strong but price pressure
  • Fungicide demand weak due to low disease pressure and excess supply

Competitive Landscape

  • Smaller players facing working capital stress
  • No major consolidation yet due to valuation gaps
  • Well-capitalized companies with new products and R&D better positioned