Polycab's margin improves sequentially but remains below last year's level
Revenue momentum improved margins quarter on quarter, but faster annual cost growth and higher interest expense kept profit growth below sales growth.
Filed 15 Oct 2026, 12:58 IST · Polycab India Ltd (POLYCAB)
Key takeaways
- Consolidated revenue grew 20.58% sequentially while expenses rose 19.83%, lifting operating margin by 0.53 percentage points.
- Year-on-year expense growth of 55.35% outpaced revenue growth of 52.83%, narrowing operating margin by 1.39 percentage points.
- Polycab's 14.37% operating margin was 1.47 percentage points below the 15.84% median of eight Industrials peers.
Price around the results
Sequential growth outpaced cost growth
Polycab reported consolidated revenue growth of 20.58% quarter on quarter, while expenses increased 19.83%. That operating leverage lifted operating profit growth to 25.20% and net profit growth to 24.27%, ahead of revenue growth. The sequential tax-rate decline of 0.51 percentage points also supported the increase in net profit.
Annual margin pressure came from costs and interest
Year on year, expenses grew 55.35%, faster than revenue at 52.83%, reducing operating margin by 1.39 percentage points. Interest expense rose 93.35%, which helped limit profit-before-tax growth to 41.83% despite the revenue increase. The 0.55-percentage-point lower tax rate partly cushioned net profit, while other income contributed 6.77% of pre-tax profit.
Margin has recovered for three straight quarters
Operating margin has improved from 12.65% in Q3FY26 to 14.37% in Q2FY27, marking a third consecutive quarterly increase. It remains below the 15.76% recorded in Q2FY26 and was 1.47 percentage points below the 15.84% median among eight Industrials peers that had reported.
No post-results move is recorded yet
The stock's immediate reaction is not yet recorded. After its last eight results, it rose three times and fell five times, with a median absolute move of 1.17%; the recent moves ranged from -2.76% to +0.94%.
Q2FY27 at a glance
Consolidated figures as filed with NSE — filed ahead of third-party databases, not yet independently cross-checked.
| Line item | Q2FY27 | Q1FY27 | QoQ | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹9,899 cr | ₹8,210 cr | +20.58% | +52.83% |
| Other income | ₹88 cr | ₹105 cr | -15.77% | +94.52% |
| Expenses | ₹8,476 cr | ₹7,074 cr | +19.83% | +55.35% |
| Operating profit | ₹1,423 cr | ₹1,136 cr | +25.20% | +39.36% |
| Operating margin (%) | 14.37% | 13.84% | — | — |
| Interest | ₹94 cr | ₹80 cr | +16.97% | +93.35% |
| Depreciation | ₹111 cr | ₹103 cr | +7.94% | +14.73% |
| Profit before tax | ₹1,306 cr | ₹1,058 cr | +23.44% | +41.83% |
| Tax | ₹316 cr | ₹262 cr | +20.89% | +38.67% |
| Net profit | ₹990 cr | ₹797 cr | +24.27% | +42.87% |
| EPS (₹) | ₹64.87 | ₹52.09 | +24.53% | +42.45% |
Operating margin of 14.37% compares with a Industrials sector median of 15.84% across 8 peers that have reported Q2FY27.
What to watch
- Whether operating margin holds above 14.37% after the annual decline of 1.39 percentage points.
- Whether expenses continue to grow slower than revenue after rising 55.35% versus 52.83% year on year.
- Whether interest growth moderates from 93.35% year on year.