Synopsis: A specialty chemicals manufacturer achieved record quarterly results, driven by a better product mix. For Q1FY27, revenue was ₹1,431.88 crore, a 28% increase, with EBITDA at ₹313.11 crore. The company is focusing on high-margin sectors like carbon nanotubes and battery materials.
A specialty chemicals company has kicked off the new financial year with its strongest quarter on record, with revenue, profit, and margins all moving higher on the back of a better product mix. The company used the results to also unveil a string of new growth projects aimed at deepening its footprint in battery materials and speciality carbon products.
With a market capitalization of Rs. 36,801 crore, the shares of Himadri Speciality Chemical Limited were trading at Rs. 734 per share, with a 52-week range of Rs. 734 to Rs. 418.50, and they are trading at a P/E of approximately 46x. The stock went up by 8 percent after the results were announced.
A Record-Breaking Quarter
Himadri Speciality Chemical delivered its highest-ever quarterly performance for Q1FY27. On a consolidated basis, revenue from operations came in at ₹1,431.88 crore, up 28% year-on-year, while EBITDA rose 33% to ₹313.11 crore, with margins expanding to 22% from 21% a year earlier. Profit after tax grew 27% YoY to ₹228.43 crore, translating into a PAT margin of 16%. Sequentially too, the company kept up its momentum, with revenue up 11% and PAT up 10% over Q4FY26.
This continues an already strong track record. FY26 consolidated revenue stood at ₹4,660.7 crore and PAT at ₹755.07 crore, both roughly doubling and tripling, respectively, over the last two years, while ROCE has climbed from single digits a few years ago to 32% in FY26. Management attributed the latest improvement to a shift toward higher-margin, technology-intensive products and the continued ramp-up of its speciality materials business, even as the broader geopolitical environment remained uncertain.
Launching India’s First Commercial CNT Project
The company announced that it has developed indigenous Carbon Nanotube technology through in-house R&D, and will now set up India’s first commercial CNT manufacturing facility. The project carries a capex of around ₹70 crore for a 200 MTPA capacity, targeted for commissioning in Q4FY27. Carbon nanotubes are known for being significantly stronger than steel while matching copper’s conductivity, and are used in lithium-ion batteries, electronics, semiconductors, coatings, and aerospace-grade composites, putting Himadri among a small set of global manufacturers in this space.
Entering The Premium Carbon Black Segment
Himadri is also moving up the value chain within its existing carbon black business. Out of its total carbon black capacity of 2.5 lakh MTPA, the company plans to convert 6,000 MTPA into Super Speciality Carbon Black, backed by a proposed capex of ₹170 crore, with commissioning targeted for Q4FY28. This speciality grade is expected to fetch better realisations in niche applications such as lithium-ion batteries, engineered plastics, coatings and conductive materials, leveraging the company’s already integrated carbon black platform.
Building Out A Battery Materials Business
The company’s push into new energy materials continues to take shape. Having commissioned a 200 MTPA anode material facility at Mahistikry, West Bengal in April 2026, Himadri is now working toward LFP Cathode Active Material capacity of 2,000 MTPA, expected by Q3FY27, with a much larger ambition of scaling this up to 200,000 MTPA over time, beginning with Phase I of 40,000 MTPA. LFP chemistry is increasingly the preferred choice for mass-market EVs, buses, two-wheelers, and grid storage given its safety and cost advantages, and the company sees this as central to its participation in the global energy transition.
Strengthening Global Battery Investments
During the quarter, Himadri also deepened its bets on the battery ecosystem. It raised its stake in International Battery Company from 17.29% to 19.44%, reaffirming confidence in the venture’s long-term prospects. Separately, portfolio investment Sicona, which is developing silicon-carbon anode technology, secured funding of up to AUD 45 million from the Australian Renewable Energy Agency to accelerate the commercialization of its next-generation anode platform.
A Broader Shift Towards Advanced Materials
Taken together, these moves reflect a company steadily repositioning itself. From its roots as a coal tar derivative business, Himadri now describes itself as working toward becoming a global advanced materials and application-driven solutions company, with a widening basket that includes battery materials, speciality chemicals, carbon nanotubes, super speciality carbon black, and forward-looking bets on lithium extraction and battery recycling. The idea, as management frames it, is to trade commodity-style, cyclical earnings for more differentiated, innovation-led growth.
A Sizeable Capex Pipeline Ahead
None of this comes without significant investment. The company’s near-term growth pipeline includes roughly ₹1,125 crore for LFP cathode material capacity, ₹248 crore for its specialty chemicals project (anthraquinone and carbazole), ₹70 crore for the CNT facility, and ₹170 crore for the SSCB expansion. Commissioning across these projects is spread between Q2FY27 and Q4FY28, meaning execution across multiple fronts simultaneously will be key to how quickly these investments start showing up in earnings.
Investor Outlook
Himadri’s Q1 numbers show a business firing on most cylinders, with record revenue, profit and margins, alongside a clear roadmap into higher-value battery and specialty materials. But the sheer number of projects in motion, spread across CNT, SSCB, LFP cathode, and anode materials, means investors will want to track execution timelines and capacity ramp-ups closely rather than reading too much into one strong quarter.
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