Dalmia Bharat's operating profit improved, but net profit fell 10.25% YoY
Revenue grew faster than expenses and margin recovered sequentially, but higher interest, depreciation and tax reduced profit after tax.
Filed 28 Apr 2026, 14:22 IST · Dalmia Bharat Ltd (DALBHARAT)
Key takeaways
- Consolidated operating profit rose 13.75% year on year as revenue grew faster than expenses, lifting operating margin by 1.87 percentage points to 21.25%.
- Net profit fell 10.25% year on year because interest rose 25.71%, depreciation rose 16.24% and the tax rate increased 4.23 percentage points.
- The stock fell 2.73% on results day, a larger decline than its 2.18% median absolute move after the previous eight results.
Price around the results
Operating recovery lifted the quarter
Dalmia Bharat reported consolidated revenue of Rs 4,245 cr for Q4FY26, up 3.76% year on year and 21.08% sequentially. Expenses grew 1.36% year on year and 15.12% sequentially, slower than revenue in both comparisons, which lifted operating profit by 13.75% year on year and 49.83% sequentially. The company's 21.25% operating margin was 2.48 percentage points above the 18.77% median for the 51 Commodities peers that had reported.
Higher financing and depreciation costs limited profit conversion
Operating margin expanded 1.87 percentage points year on year and 4.08 percentage points sequentially because costs grew more slowly than revenue. That improvement did not carry through to net profit year on year: interest increased 25.71% and depreciation increased 16.24%. Other income contributed 7.95% of pre-tax profit, while the tax rate rose 4.23 percentage points year on year; the sequential comparison benefited from a 16.21-percentage-point fall in the tax rate.
Margin rebounded after two quarters of contraction
Operating margin declined from 24.28% in Q1FY26 to 20.37% in Q2FY26 and 17.17% in Q3FY26, before recovering to 21.25% in Q4FY26. This was a sequential operating improvement, with profit before tax rising 152.87% and net profit rising 207.81%. Year on year, however, profit before tax fell 5.78% and net profit fell 10.25%, showing that the margin recovery was offset by below-operating-line costs and tax.
Initial market reaction was weaker than usual
The stock fell 2.73% on the results date, with volume at 4.02 times its usual level. That decline was somewhat larger than the 2.18% median absolute move across the previous eight result reactions, which were evenly split between four rises and four falls. The stock was down 13.48% after 15 sessions and 18.38% after 30 sessions, though those longer-window moves include the broader period after the announcement.
Q4FY26 at a glance
Consolidated figures as filed with NSE — cross-checked against an independent source.
| Line item | Q4FY26 | Q3FY26 | QoQ | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹4,245 cr | ₹3,506 cr | +21.08% | +3.76% |
| Other income | ₹35 cr | ₹30 cr | +16.67% | -62.37% |
| Expenses | ₹3,343 cr | ₹2,904 cr | +15.12% | +1.36% |
| Operating profit | ₹902 cr | ₹602 cr | +49.83% | +13.75% |
| Operating margin (%) | 21.25% | 17.17% | — | — |
| Interest | ₹132 cr | ₹118 cr | +11.86% | +25.71% |
| Depreciation | ₹365 cr | ₹340 cr | +7.35% | +16.24% |
| Profit before tax | ₹440 cr | ₹174 cr | +152.87% | -5.78% |
| Tax | ₹45 cr | ₹46 cr | -2.17% | +60.71% |
| Net profit | ₹394 cr | ₹128 cr | +207.81% | -10.25% |
| EPS (₹) | ₹20.69 | ₹6.50 | +218.31% | -10.82% |
Operating margin of 21.25% compares with a Commodities sector median of 18.77% across 51 peers that have reported Q4FY26.
How the stock reacted
| Window | Stock | vs NIFTY |
|---|---|---|
| Results day | -2.73% | -2.33% |
| Next session | -1.17% | — |
| 5 sessions | +0.10% | -0.89% |
| 15 sessions | -13.48% | — |
| 30 sessions | -18.38% | — |
Volume on the results session was 4.02× its 20-day average.
What to watch
- Whether operating margin holds above 21.25% after the Q4FY26 recovery.
- Whether interest growth moderates from 25.71% year on year.
- Whether the tax rate remains closer to 10.23% than the 26.44% recorded in Q3FY26.