Ambuja Cements' Q3 profit declines 90% due to high base, one-offs
Ambuja Cements' reported Q3 profit plunged due to one-time income and tax credit in the year-ago quarter, even as normalised profit and volumes rose sharply
 "Ambuja Cements' Q3 profit declines 90% due to high base, one-offs")
Ambuja Cements’ consolidated net profit (attributable to the company owners) for the third quarter of the fiscal year 2025-26 (Q3FY26) declined by 90.6 per cent year-on-year (Y-o-Y) to ₹204 crore amid a high-base effect from Q3FY25, as well as one-offs and tax credit.
The Adani group-owned firm had recognised one-time income of ₹826 crore in Q3FY25, which inflated its profit for that quarter.
On a normalised basis, the company’s profit after tax (PAT) for Q3FY26 jumped 258 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹378 crore. The company also said that it reported the highest ever quarterly volume at 18.9 million tonnes, an increase of 17 per cent Y-o-Y.
Higher volumes along with price gains aided Ambuja’s top line. Revenue (from operations) in Q3FY26 grew 9.2 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹10,277 crore. The revenue for Q3FY25 was ₹9,411 crore, but includes the one-time income of ₹826 crore. On a normalised basis, Ambuja’s revenue in Q3FY26 grew by 20 per cent Y-o-Y, the company said in a release.
The normalised revenue and profit growth are also on the back of a high share of premium sales, and eventually higher margins.
“This has been a decisive and strategically important quarter for Ambuja Cements. We delivered industry-leading performance, growing our volumes at two times the industry average. This was supported by stronger market execution, improved availability across both trade and non-trade channels, and higher base capacity utilisation,” Vinod Bahety, whole-time director and chief executive officer, Ambuja Cements, said during the earnings call on Friday.
A tax credit of about ₹270 crore in the year-ago quarter compared to a ₹45 crore outgo also weighed on profit in the latest quarter.
The company, however, missed the Bloomberg analyst poll’s profit estimate of ₹733.71 crore, but topped the revenue estimate of ₹10,146.74 crore.
The company’s expenses in Q3FY26, too, increased 18.72 per cent Y-o-Y to ₹9,941.46 crore, driven by a 26.49 per cent increase in power and fuel cost, and a 15.6 per cent increase in freight and forwarding expenses. Depreciation and amortisation expenses also surged 58 per cent Y-o-Y.
“We are now working to fix some of the specific issues on cost, importantly, power cost, share of green power, fuel efficiency, improvement of Waste Heat Recovery System/Alternative Fuels & Raw materials, improvement of logistics cost, which is part of the blueprint to achieve the targeted cost of ₹3,650 per metric tonne by March 2028,” said Bahety.
Ambuja’s realisations in Q3FY26 improved by ₹5 per bag Y-o-Y. The share of premium cement in trade sales, compared to Q2FY26, sustained at 35 per cent, while volume growth of premium cement grew by 31 per cent Y-o-Y.
“Our actions on premiumisation and mix improvement helped us capture significantly higher market share, better realisation than the peers, and thereby reinforced our leadership position. The operating environment remained favourable throughout the quarter. Cement demand growth was driven by infrastructure activity, sustained housing demand, and a recovery in rural construction after a favourable monsoon,” Bahety added.
For the first nine months of FY26 (9MFY26), the company’s revenue stood ₹Rs 29,740 crore, up 27 per cent Y-o-Y, while its profit stood at ₹2,804.60 crore, down 14.43 per cent Y-o-Y. Cement sales volumes stood at 53.8 million tonnes during the same period, up 19 per cent Y-o-Y.
During Q3FY26, Ambuja received approval for two separate schemes of amalgamation from its board of directors to merge ACC and Orient Cement, paving the way for a pan-India cement powerhouse and a simplified corporate structure for its shareholders.
Ambuja’s cement capacity as of Q3FY36 stood at 109 million tonnes per annum (mtpa). It aims to achieve a capacity of 115 mtpa by March 2026. The company’s annual capex is expected to be around ₹10,000 crore -- ₹8,000 crore of growth capex and ₹2,000 crore of efficiency capex. The company has spent around ₹6,000 crore in capex in 9MFY26.
In comparison, Ambuja’s peer UltraTech Cement reported volumes of 38.87 million tonnes, up 15 per cent Y-o-Y. Smaller peer Nuvoco Vistas Corp reported a 7 per cent rise in sales volumes at 5 million tonnes. Dalmia Bharat reported volumes of 7.3 million tonnes (up 9.5 per cent), while JK Cement’s grey cement sales volume stood at 5.32 million tonnes, up 22 per cent Y-o-Y.
Sequentially, Ambuja’s revenue increased by 12 per cent, while its reported profit dipped 88.5 per cent.
The results came during market hours on Friday. Ambuja’s share price fell by 4.8 per cent to close at ₹510.20 on the BSE.