Costs erased revenue growth, cutting operating margin to 1.89%
Revenue rose 19.45% YoY, but expenses grew 22.22%; other income supplied 40.03% of pre-tax profit.
Filed 04 Nov 2026, 12:13 IST · BASF India Ltd (BASF)
Key takeaways
- Revenue grew 19.45% YoY, but faster expense growth cut operating margin by 2.22 percentage points to 1.89%.
- Sequentially, operating margin fell 8.57 percentage points as expenses rose 9.74% while revenue grew only 0.16%.
- Other income accounted for 40.03% of pre-tax profit, while net profit declined 42.41% YoY.
Price around the results
Expense growth overwhelmed the 19.45% sales increase
In consolidated results, revenue grew 19.45% YoY, but expenses increased faster at 22.22%, reducing operating profit by 45.01%. The same pressure was sharper sequentially: revenue was nearly flat at +0.16%, while expenses rose 9.74%, cutting operating margin by 8.57 percentage points. Net profit consequently fell 42.41% YoY and 82.87% QoQ.
Other income made up 40.03% of pre-tax profit
Other income contributed 40.03% of pre-tax profit, making reported earnings less dependent on operating profit in this quarter. The tax rate was broadly unchanged YoY, rising 0.38 percentage points, so the lower tax rate did not materially cushion the profit decline. Interest expense fell 68.37% YoY, but that benefit was outweighed by the operating contraction.
Margin rebounded in Q1FY27, then reversed sharply
Operating margin improved from 3.23% in Q4FY26 to 10.46% in Q1FY27, before falling to 1.89% in Q2FY27. This is not a continuous multi-quarter decline because margin had risen to 4.41% in Q3FY26, but the latest result gives back most of the previous quarter's improvement. BASF India's margin was 11.38 percentage points below the 13.27% median among 111 Commodities peers that had reported.
Past result-day moves have leaned negative
The current filing has no reported post-results market reaction yet. Across the eight prior result reactions, the stock rose three times and fell five times, with a median absolute move of 1.55%, so the historical pattern has been more often negative than positive.
Q2FY27 at a glance
Consolidated figures as filed with NSE — cross-checked against an independent source.
| Line item | Q2FY27 | Q1FY27 | QoQ | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹4,832 cr | ₹4,824 cr | +0.16% | +19.45% |
| Other income | ₹33 cr | ₹22 cr | +49.44% | +33.86% |
| Expenses | ₹4,741 cr | ₹4,320 cr | +9.74% | +22.22% |
| Operating profit | ₹91 cr | ₹504 cr | -81.86% | -45.01% |
| Operating margin (%) | 1.89% | 10.46% | — | — |
| Interest | ₹3 cr | ₹5 cr | -51.25% | -68.37% |
| Depreciation | ₹39 cr | ₹41 cr | -5.12% | -1.39% |
| Profit before tax | ₹83 cr | ₹480 cr | -82.70% | -42.11% |
| Tax | ₹21 cr | ₹132 cr | -83.87% | -41.24% |
| Net profit | ₹62 cr | ₹360 cr | -82.87% | -42.41% |
| EPS (₹) | ₹14.30 | ₹83.30 | -82.83% | -42.34% |
Operating margin of 1.89% compares with a Commodities sector median of 13.27% across 111 peers that have reported Q2FY27.
What to watch
- Whether operating margin moves back above the 3.23% recorded in Q4FY26.
- Whether expenses continue to grow faster than revenue after the latest 9.74% versus 0.16% sequential split.
- Whether other income's 40.03% share of pre-tax profit declines.