JK Cement Q1 Results: Revenue grows 20% but operating performance weak

JK Cement reported a mixed set of earnings for the quarter ended June, with revenue rising 20.3% year-on-year, while operating performance weakened as EBITDA and margins declined.The company reported a 14.5% year-on-year fall in net profit to ₹277 crore for the first quarter, compared with ₹324 crore in the corresponding period last year.

Revenue from operations increased 20.3% to ₹4,031.7 crore during the quarter, up from ₹3,352.5 crore a year ago.
Despite the strong top-line growth, operating performance remained under pressure. EBITDA declined 5.8% year-on-year to ₹647.7 crore from ₹687.7 crore in the year-ago period.The EBITDA margin contracted to 16.1% during the quarter from 20.5% in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year, reflecting weaker operating profitability.

The decline in margins weighed on earnings, with net profit falling even as the company reported double-digit growth in revenue.
Volume growth stayed strong through the quarter. On a combined basis, sales volumes rose 18% year-on-year, with grey cement volumes up 19% and white cement and putty volumes up 11%.Grey cement sales stood at 5.96 million tonnes, up 18% year-on-year, while white cement volumes came in at 0.54 million tonnes, up 29% year-on-year.

The company attributed the double-digit volume growth to the ramp-up of its 6 MTPA capacity expansion, commissioned in the second half of FY26, along with a boost to white cement volumes from lower imports out of the UAE.

On the cost side, the company said the EBITDA decline was largely due to elevated maintenance and packaging costs during the quarter, even as price hikes and stronger white cement volumes helped offset input cost pressures tied to the geopolitical situation.

On expansion plans, JK Cement said it remains on track to scale grey cement capacity from 32.3 MTPA currently to 40 MTPA by FY28 and 50 MTPA by FY30, with planned capex of ₹5,000-6,000 crore over the next two years.

This includes a 7 MTPA greenfield project at Jaisalmer in Rajasthan and split grinding units at Bikaner (Rajasthan) and Bhatinda (Punjab), all scheduled for commissioning in the first half of FY28. A separate 6 lakh tonne wall putty plant at Nathdwara, Rajasthan, is expected to be commissioned this quarter (Q2 FY27).

JK Cement shares ended 0.65% lower at ₹5,393 on the NSE last Friday.

Also read: Cement sector June quarter preview: Demand to stay strong, but rising costs may hit earnings