Shares of CEAT Ltd. surged as much as 12% on Thursday, April 29, following the company's robust quarterly performance. According to reports from CNBC TV18, the stock witnessed significantly increased trading activity with around 15 lakh shares changing hands in the first two hours, substantially higher than the 20-day average of about 35,000 shares for that time of day. Delivery volumes were also elevated, with around 18% of traded shares marked for delivery by 11 am.
The company delivered exceptional quarterly results with consolidated net profit surging 145% to ₹284 crore for Q4 FY26, compared with ₹99.5 crore in the same quarter of the previous financial year. As reported by The Economic Times, revenue from operations rose more than 23% year-on-year to ₹4,036 crore during the quarter, from ₹3,421 crore reported in Q4 of FY25. EBITDA margin stood at 14.6%, with total expenses growing over 19% year-on-year to nearly ₹3,895 crore. The company also recommended a dividend of ₹35 per equity share, subject to shareholders' approval, which is higher than the ₹30 dividend paid in 2025 and 2024.
Volume growth remained healthy across all segments, led by strong traction in OEM and international markets, while the replacement segment remained largely flat. According to The Economic Times, CEO and MD Arnab Banerjee noted that the company delivered high growth in all segments, including international business, despite geopolitical tensions. Realisations were broadly unchanged sequentially and saw a marginal uptick on a yearly basis. The raw material basket remained largely stable on a quarter-on-quarter basis, supporting the company's margin expansion despite some sequential pressure.
Looking ahead, CEAT faces short-term challenges on supply chain and costs due to steep increase in raw material costs, which the company intends to mitigate through pricing and strong cost management. As reported by The Economic Times, Banerjee highlighted that while there is momentum on top line, there are short-term challenges on supply chain and costs due to steep increase raw material cost. The company plans to continue expanding its capacities in line with growth plans, having successfully crossed the ₹15,000 crore revenue milestone and achieved market share gains in replacement and OEM segments. The company also successfully closed the CAMSO deal during the year.
CEAT shares later pared some gains to trade around 6% higher at ₹3,720 apiece as seen at 11:20 am, according to The Economic Times. The stock has fallen around 2% in one week but gained more than 7% in one month and 22% in one year. Motilal Oswal maintained a 'Buy' rating on the shares, noting that the company's net sales grew 23.3% largely in line with estimates, aided by healthy YoY volume growth across all segments and slightly better realisations. The brokerage added that the company's EBITDA margin expanded to 14%, ahead of estimates, led by operating leverage benefits. ICICI Securities viewed the stable gross margin performance as a positive surprise, especially given elevated commodity prices, and noted that the stock is trading at reasonable valuations around 8x EV/EBITDA and 16x P/E over the past twelve months.
