Polycab India Limited Q3 FY26 Earnings Call Summary

Summary

Polycab India Limited - Q3 FY26 Earnings Call Summary Friday, January 16, 2026 4:00 PM

Event Participants

Executives 3 Chirayu Upadhyaya (Head of Investor Relations), Niyant Maru (Chief Financial Officer), Shashank Yagnick (Head Strategy)

Analysts 8 Achal Lohade, Akshay Gattani, Aniruddha Joshi, Ashish Jain, Keyur Pandya, Praveen Sahay, Pulkit Patni, Ravi Swaminathan, Sonali Salgaonkar, Umang Mehta, Vidit Trivedi

Financials & KPIs

Geographic & Segment Commentary

• Wires & Cables (W&C): Domestic revenue surged 59% YoY with 40% volume growth, significantly outperforming an estimated industry growth of 20%. Growth was driven by robust government infrastructure spending (28% increase in capex) and healthy real estate launches in top-tier cities. Strategic decision to stagger price hikes for rising copper (+21% QoQ) and aluminium (+11% QoQ) costs helped capture market share despite temporary margin pressure.

• FMEG: Segment achieved its fourth consecutive profitable quarter with 17% revenue growth. The solar business was the standout, growing 2x YoY due to government rooftop incentive schemes, and has become the largest category within FMEG. Fans and other categories remained steady, though the fan industry faced seasonal softness and BEE transition price hikes of 2-4%.

• EPC & International: International business grew 5% YoY, contributing 6% to total revenue, with strong traction in the Middle East and Latin America offsetting soft U.S. demand. EPC revenue grew 4% YoY with a 6.7% margin as execution commenced on the BharatNet scheme, which has a total revenue visibility of ₹8 billion over the contract period.

Company-Specific & Strategic Commentary

• Project Spring Execution: Driven by “Project Spring,” the company is capturing whitespaces in Tier 3–5 cities through the “Etira” brand and aggressive distribution expansion. Management reaffirmed the target to reach ₹200 billion in annual revenue (already achieved in 9M FY26) and maintain long-term EBITDA margins between 11-13%.

• Brand Building & A&P: Advertising spend tripled this quarter to strengthen brand equity during the festive season. Management plans to scale A&P spending to 3-5% of B2C revenue (currently at 1.5%) to support the FMEG segment’s journey toward 8-10% EBITDA margins by FY30.

• Leadership Transition: The Board approved the redesignation of Bharat and Nikhil Jaisinghani as Joint Managing Directors to lead the next phase of growth and strategic clarity.

Guidance & Outlook

Risks & Constraints

Q&A Highlights

Margin Compression & Price Hikes

• Question: What led to the sequential margin drop despite high volume growth? (Sonali Salgaonkar)
• Answer: Copper/Aluminium prices rose 35% and 27% respectively in 9M FY26. Management took a strategic call to pass these on in a staggered manner (75-80% passed through by Jan 2026) to protect volumes and gain market share (Chirayu Upadhyaya).

Volume vs Value Growth

• Question: Can you provide the volume-value split for the 59% domestic growth? (Praveen Sahay)
• Answer: Domestic volume growth was 40% for both cables and wires. Value-wise, wires grew 70% and cables 50%, reflecting the higher copper content and inflation in the wires segment (Chirayu Upadhyaya).

Inventory & Hedging

• Question: Does the high inventory level lead to gains in a rising price environment? (Achal Lohade)
• Answer: No, Polycab hedges its inventory. Pricing is fixed at the time of order/sale, not procurement, ensuring margin stability and preventing inventory losses/gains (Chirayu Upadhyaya).

FMEG & Solar Performance

• Question: What is driving the FMEG profitability? (Aniruddha Joshi)
• Answer: Solar has become the largest FMEG category with high single-digit margins. Switches, switchgear, and conduit pipes are also performing well, leading to the fourth straight profitable quarter for the segment (Chirayu Upadhyaya).

Key Takeaway

Polycab India delivered a record-breaking performance in Q3 FY26, with consolidated revenue growing 46% YoY to ₹83.4 billion and domestic W&C revenue surging 59%. This growth was underpinned by 40% volume expansion, indicating massive market share gains against an industry growing at approximately 20%. While EBITDA margins faced a temporary 110 bps YoY compression to 12.7% due to a strategic decision to stagger the pass-through of sharp copper price hikes (+21% QoQ), the company effectively prioritized market dominance and customer loyalty. The FMEG segment showed resilience with its fourth consecutive profitable quarter, led by a solar business that doubled in size. With 9M FY26 revenue already crossing the ₹200 billion milestone and high capacity utilization (80%+), Polycab remains well-positioned to capitalize on India’s infrastructure and real estate upcycle. Management maintains a confident outlook for Q4, backed by aggressive price transmission and sustained domestic demand.