Emami said its core domestic portfolio remained resilient in the fourth quarter even as unfavourable summer conditions and geopolitical disruptions in West Asia weighed on overall business performance.
The FMCG company, which announced its Q4 earnings on Friday, said seasonal disruptions affected its summer-focused portfolio during the quarter, while the conflict in West Asia disrupted international operations and pushed up freight costs.
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On a consolidated basis, revenue from operations fell 4% year-on-year to ₹925 crore in the March quarter. However, excluding the summer portfolio, Emami said its domestic business posted an 11% growth, driven by strong performance across key brands and categories.
The company said this reflected the resilience of its core business and indicated that the softer overall performance was largely linked to temporary seasonal disruptions rather than structural weakness in demand.
“Q4FY26 was impacted by temporary external headwinds, including unfavourable seasonal conditions affecting the summer portfolio and geopolitical disruptions in West Asia, which weighed on overall business performance during the quarter. Despite these challenges, the resilience of our core domestic business remained evident, with the non-summer portfolio delivering healthy 11% growth,” said Vice Chairman and Managing Director Harsha V Agarwal.
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Emami’s international business declined 5% during the quarter as geopolitical tensions in West Asia affected shipping routes through the Strait of Hormuz, disrupted supply chains and increased freight expenses.
The company said the international business had maintained strong momentum through most of the quarter before operations were impacted in March following developments in the region.
“While these factors affected near-term performance, we believe they represent a passing phase rather than a structural concern, and we expect business momentum to improve from next quarter itself,” Agarwal said.
The maker of brands such as Navratna and BoroPlus said it remains committed to its international markets and expects gradual normalisation once the geopolitical situation stabilises.
Despite pressure from input costs, Emami improved its gross margins during the quarter. Gross margin expanded by 250 basis points to 68.4%, helped by calibrated pricing actions, operational efficiencies and tighter cost controls.
EBITDA for the quarter stood at ₹187 crore, while profit after tax came in at ₹143 crore.
At the same time, the company continued to step up investments behind its brands and future growth initiatives. Advertising and promotional spending rose 12% during the quarter as Emami continued pushing distribution expansion and media investments.
Mohan Goenka, Vice Chairman and Whole-Time Director, said the quarter tested the resilience of the company’s operating model amid a muted demand environment.
“The quarter tested the resilience of our operating model, and the business responded with disciplined execution. Despite a muted demand environment, we delivered a gross margin expansion of 250 basis points through strong cost management and operational efficiencies, while increasing investments behind our brands by 12% to support future growth,” Goenka said.
The company said it remains focused on long-term growth through continued investments in its core brands as well as expansion into high-growth new-age FMCG categories.
Goenka added that the company was already seeing encouraging trends in the current quarter, particularly in its summer portfolio.
“We are encouraged by the early trends in Q1FY27, particularly across the summer portfolio, supported by expanded distribution, focused media investments and stronger trade activation. We remain confident in the strength of our brands and our ability to deliver sustained profitable growth,” he said.
Several FMCG companies are navigating uneven weather patterns, pressure on discretionary spending and geopolitical uncertainties affecting supply chains and commodity costs. The company, however, indicated that it sees the recent disruptions as temporary and expects business momentum to recover progressively in the coming quarters.
