Havells India Limited — Q4 FY26 earnings call

Call held 22 Apr 2026

Management summary

Havells India delivered a mixed Q4 FY26, with robust growth in industrial segments and strategic investments in solar and Lloyd's manufacturing capacity. However, consumer demand for cooling products was subdued by a mild season start and broader cautious sentiment due to global disruptions and inflation. The company is actively managing cost pressures through calibrated price actions and remains optimistic about a revival in summer demand.

Highlights

  • Strong momentum observed in industrial and infrastructure-linked categories.

  • Cables and Wires segment reported 6% volume growth and 14% value growth, with industrial cables growing faster than domestic wires.

  • Strategic investment of ₹600 crores in Goldi Solar led to a fair valuation gain of ₹283 crores, reported under 'other income'.

  • New refrigerator plant for Lloyd was commissioned, and a refreshed product portfolio launched.

  • Trade receivables improved significantly from ₹1,254 crores to ₹782 crores, reducing debtor days from 20-21 to 13.

Concerns

  • Modest overall performance due to milder start to season impacting channel stocking for cooling products.

  • Consumer categories experienced cautious trade sentiment, primarily driven by higher costs from recent global disruptions.

  • Lloyd's margins were impacted by lower revenues during the quarter.

  • Fans, ACs, and air coolers experienced degrowth in value terms due to BEE norms stocking in Q3 and a delayed summer.

Key financials

2 periods

Headline

  • Trade Receivables (Previous)
    ₹1,254 Cr
  • Debtor Days (Previous)
    20 days
  • Goldi Solar Investment
    ₹600 Cr
  • Goldi Solar Fair Valuation Gain
    ₹283 Cr

Q4 FY26

  • Trade Receivables
    ₹782 Cr
  • Debtor Days
    13 days

What they filed

Q1 FY27: revenue up 19.5%, net profit down 16.7% against the same quarter last year.

₹ Cr · quarterly
Line itemQ2 FY25Q3 FY25Q4 FY25Q1 FY26Q2 FY26Q3 FY26Q4 FY26Q1 FY27
Revenue4,539 4,889 6,544 5,455 4,779 +5%5,588 +14%6,705 +2%6,518 +19%
EBITDA375 426 757 516 438 +17%516 +21%729 −4%466 −10%
Net profit268 278 517 348 318 +19%300 +8%723 +40%290 −17%
How to read this

₹ crore, as filed. The percentage beside a figure is the change against the same quarter a year earlier — never the quarter before, which would make every seasonal business look like it collapses and booms each year.

Segment breakdown

  • Cables and Wires
    6% Volume Growth14% Value Growth8% Blended Price Hike
  • Other (Solar)
    48% Growth
  • Lloyd (ACs)
    8-15 % Price Hikes

Capital allocation

high confidence
  • Capex ₹800 Cr
    • Cables and Wires capacity expansion ₹800 Cr
    • New R&D centre
    • New refrigerator plant at Ghiloth (Lloyd)
    Yes I think by '27-'28 major capex would go into cables and wires which is already panned out. And I think this is a lot of that is happening in this financial year also, INR800 crores. The rest is, big investment is going into the new R&D centre. And that will happen over the next two, two and a half years. There is no major new capex in the Lloyd segment.
  • M&A Goldi Solar Investment · Closed · Consideration ₹[object Object] (cash)

    Leverage Goldi's solar module manufacturing capabilities to expand solar portfolio and take advantage of tailwinds in the solar segment.

    Recognised a fair valuation gain of ₹283 crores on this investment, reported under 'other income' for the quarter.

    As you would be aware, during the year, we invested Rs 600 crores in Goldi Solar. This investment allows us to leverage Goldi's solar module manufacturing capabilities to expand our solar portfolio. Additionally, during Q4, we recognised a fair valuation gain of Rs 283 crores on this investment. The gain is reported under 'other income' for the quarter.

Guidance & targets

Profitability

  • Lighting Segment Long-term Margin Profitability · long-term · High confidence 30-32%
    on an average, you can expect 30% to 32%

    — Anil Rai Gupta

  • Operating Leverage Profitability · ongoing · High confidence Revenue growth should outpace expenses growth (except A&P)
    we'll try to get more operating leverage, which means revenue growth should outpace the expenses growth, except in advertising and promotions where we are taking conscious decisions to up our strengths.

    — Anil Rai Gupta

Pricing

  • Overall Price Hikes Pricing · current · High confidence 5-20%
    No, I think we would like to see that in many product ranges, it ranges between 5% to 20%.

    — Anil Rai Gupta

  • AC Price Hikes Pricing · current · High confidence 8-15%
    It ranges between at least 8% to 15% depending upon the AC

    — Anil Rai Gupta

Capacity

  • Cables and Wires Planned Capacity Capacity · by end of this year early next year first quarter · High confidence Entire capacity operational
    So hopefully by the end of this year early next year first quarter we'll be having the entire capacity which was planned.

    — Anil Rai Gupta

What to watch in Q1 FY27

Summer Demand Revival for Cooling Products

next quarter
Current Signs of pickup in demand from south and west, now coming in north
Target Sustained pickup in demand leading to improved volumes for fans, ACs, and air coolers

Why it matters

Sustained summer demand is crucial for the performance of key consumer durables segments after a delayed start to the season.

After a delayed onset of summer season, we are now seeing signs of pickup in demand for cooling products. We remain optimistic on a revival of summer demand while closely tracking inflation trend and its impact on consumer sentiments.

Risks & concerns

  • Global Disruptions and War

    high

    Recent developments in West Asia are causing cost pressures and contributing to cautious trade sentiment, impacting raw material prices.

    Management acknowledged

  • Inflation and Consumer Sentiments

    high

    High price escalation across product categories and inflation trends could affect consumer offtake and demand, making the market environment difficult to predict.

    Management acknowledged

  • Competitive Market

    medium

    Segments like solar and cables & wires are competitive, requiring a balance between gaining market share and maintaining profitability, especially with new entrants.

    Management acknowledged

  • Monsoon Impact on Demand

    medium

    The impact of monsoon on demand for cooling products is difficult to predict, although a low base from last year offers some optimism.

    Management acknowledged

Q&A highlights

6 direct, 1 evasive
Cables & Wires Volume Growth vs. Copper Prices Direct
On an overall there was 6% volume growth. The industrial cable segment has grown much faster than the domestic wire segment. We saw destocking in wires in first half of Q4 and there was a high base of last year.

Clarifies the underlying volume performance and market dynamics in the Cables & Wires segment, differentiating between industrial and domestic, and explaining the impact of destocking and copper price movements.

Asked by Ravi Swaminathan

Lighting Segment Margins Direct
Yes, you can take that as well. As I said, during the year, sometimes in the fourth quarter, there are certain year-end releases, and that is for the entire year. So, one can say on an average, you can expect 30% to 32%.

Addresses the sharp margin increase in Lighting despite flat revenue, attributing it to year-end adjustments and providing a long-term margin expectation.

Asked by Natasha Jain

Lloyd Channel Inventory and Summer Demand Direct
I think your analysis is absolutely right. The first half of April was also slow. So, there were some channel inventories, but now it's evening out. And south and west have started with a good summer. And I think it's now coming in the north as well. So, hopefully, by the end of this month, there will be normalized inventories at the channel level as well.

Provides an update on the critical channel inventory situation for Lloyd's cooling products, indicating a positive trend towards normalization with improving summer demand.

Asked by Natasha Jain

FY27 Outlook and Demand Volatility Evasive
In today's environment, what do you expect an answer from me? You know, we are just looking at month to month, who knows where the war goes? How the, I mean, okay, we are seeing sharp increases in prices for most of the product categories. So, how much will volume growth be? It is difficult to say at this point of time.

Management explicitly declined to provide specific FY27 guidance, highlighting the high uncertainty due to global events (war) and raw material price volatility, indicating a cautious near-term outlook.

Asked by Rahul Agarwal

Solar Business Growth and Margins Direct
most of the growth that you see in the 'others' segment is coming out of solar. And you see, the way to look at it is that we are building capacities, both in industrial cables as well as solar. Solar through an investment in Goldi Solar... difficult to say about the margins. One, of course, volumes will benefit, but it is a competitive space and we also need to see our market shares growing.

Explains the significant growth in the 'other' segment is primarily from solar, driven by capacity expansion, and outlines the strategy to balance market share growth with margin improvement in this competitive space.

Asked by Aniruddha Joshi

Trade Receivables Reduction Direct
No, this is normally, this is the last day through channel financing. So, these kinds of fluctuations are normal. There is no structural change in our payment terms or the billing. Depending upon the mix, sometimes these things happen. But I think you should keep them as normalized or normally and not see them as anything exceptional happening in this particular March quarter.

Addresses the sharp reduction in trade receivables and debtor days, clarifying it as normal fluctuations due to channel financing and mix rather than a structural change in payment terms.

Asked by Balasubramanian

Lloyd Capital Allocation and Returns Strategy Partial
So the biggest thing about any consumer-oriented brand build, brand-oriented business is something where it's an easier answer that you can't really say okay, if I have to fully utilize my capacity, I will lower down my price and start selling more. It doesn't really happen as you can very well understand. It requires long-term investment in brand building.

Analyst questioned the profitability of ₹4,000 crores deployed in Lloyd. Management reiterated the long-term nature of brand building and innovation for returns, emphasizing that quick capacity utilization at lower prices is not the strategy.

Asked by Pulkit Patni

Impact of New Entrants in Cables & Wires Direct
new players will also come with the right investments. They'll definitely gain some market share but some readjustments may happen between the unorganized and organized sector.

Discusses the potential impact of a large new player entering the housing wire market, acknowledging market share shifts but emphasizing that companies investing in innovation, brand, and distribution will be winners.

Asked by Renu Baid

3 min read 7 chapters

Detailed narrative

Q4 FY26 Performance Overview and Market Dynamics

Havells India reported a modest overall performance for Q4 FY26, primarily due to a milder start to the season impacting channel stocking for cooling products. While momentum in industrial and infrastructure-linked categories remained strong, consumer categories experienced cautious trade sentiment, driven by higher costs from recent global disruptions. The company stepped up advertising investments to enhance brand visibility while maintaining limited growth in overall spends.

Cables and Wires Segment Performance

The Cables and Wires segment achieved 6% volume growth and 14% value growth in Q4 FY26, implying an 8% blended price hike. The industrial cable segment grew significantly faster than the domestic wire segment. Domestic wires saw slight degrowth, attributed to destocking in the first half of Q4 and a high base from Q4 FY25, which saw a major copper price increase leading to higher channel stocking.

Strategic Investments in Solar and Lloyd

Havells made a strategic investment of ₹600 crores in Goldi Solar during the year, which resulted in a fair valuation gain of ₹283 crores reported under 'other income' for the quarter. This investment aims to leverage Goldi's solar module manufacturing capabilities to expand Havells' solar portfolio. Additionally, the company invested in a new refrigerator plant for Lloyd at Ghiloth, which was commissioned during the quarter, alongside the launch of a refreshed product portfolio.

Margin Management and Cost Pressures

Profitability margins held well across most segments, with the exception of Lloyd, which was impacted by lower revenues. The company is actively navigating cost pressures linked to recent developments in West Asia, which have led to increased raw material prices. Calibrated price actions have been initiated across various categories, with price increases ranging from 5% to 20% (8-15% for ACs), as the company strives to pass on costs while balancing market share retention.

Consumer Demand and Inventory Outlook

The delayed onset of the summer season initially impacted demand for cooling products, leading to some channel inventory. However, management noted signs of pickup in demand from the south and west, now extending to the north, with expectations of normalized channel inventories by the end of April 2026. Despite this, the company remains cautious, closely tracking inflation trends and their impact on broader consumer sentiments, as high price escalations could affect offtake.

Capital Expenditure and Long-term Strategy

For FY26, approximately ₹800 crores in capex is allocated to cables and wires, with significant investment also planned for a new R&D center over the next two to two and a half years. No major new capex is planned for the Lloyd segment. Havells continues its long-term strategy of investing in innovation, brand building, and distribution reach, aiming for revenue growth to outpace expense growth (excluding advertising and promotions) to achieve operating leverage.

Trade Receivables Efficiency

Trade receivables saw a notable reduction from ₹1,254 crores to ₹782 crores, leading to an improvement in debtor days from 20-21 to 13. Management clarified that these fluctuations are normal due to channel financing and mix, and do not represent a structural change in payment terms or billing practices, indicating efficient working capital management.

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