Camlin Fine Sciences Q2 FY27 results: net loss widens to ₹29.70 crore, revenue up 6.9%

How did Camlin Fine Sciences perform in Q2 FY27?

Camlin Fine Sciences reported consolidated revenue of ₹491.46 crore in Q2 FY27, up ₹31.63 crore or 6.9% from Q2 FY26. Total expenses rose ₹65.59 crore or 14.1% to ₹529.74 crore, and EBITDA fell ₹31.18 crore or 93.3% to ₹2.23 crore. The EBITDA margin was 0.5%, down 6.8 percentage points from 7.3% in Q2 FY26.

The company reported a net loss of ₹29.70 crore in Q2 FY27, against a net loss of ₹14.95 crore in Q2 FY26, while basic EPS was ₹1.45 compared with ₹0.76. Against Q1 FY27, revenue fell ₹28.42 crore or 5.5% to ₹491.46 crore, EBITDA fell ₹7.05 crore or 76.0% to ₹2.23 crore, and the margin declined 1.3 percentage points to 0.5%. The net loss narrowed by ₹3.92 crore from Q1 FY27, while EPS improved by ₹0.20.

On the standalone basis, revenue was ₹244.58 crore and the company reported a net loss of ₹20.01 crore. The consolidated figures include discontinued operations, while the investor presentation separately reported a continuing-operations loss of ₹280.8 million.

What changed in Camlin Fine Sciences' costs and profit?

Total expenses increased to ₹529.74 crore in Q2 FY27 from ₹464.15 crore in Q2 FY26. Cost of materials rose ₹55.18 crore or 26.4% to ₹264.20 crore, employee cost increased ₹11.98 crore or 19.9% to ₹72.27 crore, and finance costs were up ₹1.68 crore or 8.9% at ₹20.59 crore. Depreciation increased ₹1.09 crore or 5.8% to ₹19.92 crore, while other expenses rose ₹1.87 crore or 1.6% to ₹121.28 crore.

Other income increased by ₹0.37 crore or 8.1% to ₹4.96 crore from Q2 FY26. The company reported an exceptional charge of ₹1.93 crore in Q2 FY27, compared with no exceptional item in the year-ago quarter. Tax moved from an expense of ₹5.91 crore in Q2 FY26 to a tax credit of ₹6.81 crore in Q2 FY27.

Management said higher raw-material prices, limited price pass-through and liquidity issues reduced the gross margin to 39.8% from 46.5% in Q2 FY26. It also cited higher freight expenses, extended transit times and longer working-capital cycles. The company incurred ₹51 million of maintenance expenses at the non-operational Diphenol Dahej unit.

How did the first half of FY27 go?

In H1 FY27, Camlin Fine Sciences reported consolidated revenue of ₹1,011.34 crore, up ₹127.96 crore or 14.5% from ₹883.38 crore in H1 FY26. Total income rose ₹117.52 crore or 13.1% to ₹1,014.05 crore, but profit before tax moved from ₹4.89 crore in H1 FY26 to a loss of ₹68.91 crore in H1 FY27.

The net loss widened by ₹37.69 crore, from ₹25.63 crore in H1 FY26 to ₹63.32 crore in H1 FY27. Basic EPS was ₹3.10 compared with ₹1.30 in the year-earlier first half. Management separately reported a continuing-operations loss of ₹598.8 million for H1 FY27.

What do the balance sheet and cash flow show?

At 30 September 2026, total assets were ₹2,267.66 crore, down from ₹2,323.90 crore at 31 March 2026, while total equity was ₹931.36 crore compared with ₹1,000.81 crore. Borrowings fell to ₹629.36 crore from ₹668.08 crore, and cash declined to ₹49.50 crore from ₹108.56 crore. Inventories rose to ₹580.54 crore from ₹503.74 crore, and trade receivables fell to ₹337.17 crore from ₹373.02 crore.

H1 FY27 operating cash flow was ₹41.57 crore, compared with ₹67.14 crore in H1 FY26. Investing cash flow was negative ₹17.91 crore against negative ₹16.02 crore, while financing cash flow was negative ₹82.72 crore against negative ₹67.75 crore. Capital expenditure was nil in H1 FY27, compared with ₹29.66 crore a year earlier.

How has Camlin Fine Sciences done over the last 8 quarters?

Revenue rose year on year in each of the last two quarters. Across the reported series, revenue reached its high of ₹519.88 crore in Q1 FY27 before falling to ₹491.46 crore in Q2 FY27; the low was ₹423.55 crore in Q1 FY26. EBITDA margin fell to 0.5% in Q2 FY27 from 1.8% in Q1 FY27, after reaching 13.6% in Q4 FY25.

Reported net profit was highest at ₹86.28 crore in Q4 FY26, while the lowest was a net loss of ₹37.10 crore in Q3 FY26. Q2 FY27 showed a net loss of ₹29.70 crore, compared with a net loss of ₹33.62 crore in Q1 FY27, so profit improved sequentially while revenue and EBITDA margin declined.

Which businesses drove the quarter?

The investor presentation showed year-on-year segment growth for Straights at 26% and Blends at 25%, while Aroma revenue declined 41%. Management said the Aroma decline reflected the changeover to Methyl Vanillin during the quarter, which reduced utilisation and increased unabsorbed costs. Year-ago segment figures were not provided for comparison.

What else did the company announce?

The board approved the un-audited consolidated and standalone financial results for the quarter and half year ended 30 September 2026, following review by the audit committee. It also approved a rights issue of equity shares of ₹1 each for an amount not exceeding ₹250 crores, subject to regulatory and statutory approvals.

The filing stated that the issue price, rights entitlement ratio, record date, timing and payment terms would be determined later by the board or its Securities Issue and Allotment Committee. The company also disclosed an SEBI administrative warning letter dated 29 October 2026 for violating SEBI listing obligations. No dividend or appointment was reported in the same-day filings.

What did Camlin Fine Sciences' management say?

Management said Q2 revenue growth was led by Straights and Value-added Blends, but higher raw-material prices, limited price pass-through, freight disruption and longer working-capital cycles affected profitability. It reported Q2 gross margin of 39.8% against 46.5% in Q2 FY26 and said the Diphenol Dahej unit remained non-operational while incurring ₹51 million of maintenance expenses.

For FY27, management said, “Growth momentum to continue across all geographies” for Blends, while “Vitafor and Vinpai to stabilise.” It anticipated “an improvement in volumes and realisations over the coming quarters” for Aroma and said margins should improve with enhanced utilisation. Management also said ongoing logistics disruptions and inflationary pressures were expected to weigh on operations in the near term.

Management said the board had approved a rights issue of up to ₹2,500 million to address liquidity challenges. The presentation also said Camlin acquired an additional 11% stake in Vinpai for ₹201 million, taking its total holding to 94.82%, and acquired 100% of Belgium-based Vitafor for €1 million in cash consideration. It said the AMEA strategy includes expanding Xtendra, NaSure and Enzentia across food, functional ingredients and animal nutrition, as well as increasing exports, especially in the Middle East.

How did Camlin Fine Sciences shares react?

After the filing appeared, Camlin Fine Sciences shares were down 2.5% after five minutes, 3.5% after 15 minutes and 4.5% after 30 minutes. The stock closed 18.0% below its previous close on the reaction day and was down 17.0% from that close by the next day's close. No five-day or one-month reaction was provided.

The Specialty Chemicals sector's median move was 1.3% on the reaction day and 2.2% by the next day's close, so Camlin underperformed the industry median by 19.3 percentage points and 19.2 percentage points, respectively. Earlier results-day moves included 7.2% on 26 May 2026, negative 10.0% on 13 February 2026 and negative 10.2% on 10 November 2025.

How did other Specialty Chemicals companies do?

Among 69 other Specialty Chemicals companies that had filed for the quarter, the median revenue growth was 28.9%. Of the 69 peers, seven grew more slowly than Camlin Fine Sciences and 62 grew faster. Of the 63 peers for which profit was compared, 54 reported higher profit.