More Stories

Informist, Wednesday, Jan. 28, 2026

By Afra Abubacker

NEW DELHI – Blue Star Ltd. is expected to report a rise in its consolidated net profit for the December quarter, supported by a sequential recovery in margins and improved performance in some segments. However, muted seasonal demand for room air conditioners and high channel inventories are expected to cap the year-on-year earnings growth, according to analysts.

Blue Star's consolidated net profit for the December quarter is expected to rise over 7% on year and more than 30% sequentially to INR 1.29 billion, according to the average of estimates of seven brokerages. The highest estimate for net profit is INR 1.37 billion by JM Financial Institutional Securities Pvt Ltd. and the lowest is INR 1.19 billion by Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd.

Brokerages expect the top line to improve sequentially, partly driven by higher sales following the cut in the Goods and Services Tax and some channel stocking ahead of changes in energy-rating norms under the Bureau of Energy Efficiency's star-label tables, which took effect from January. Analysts also expect margins to improve from the September quarter due to a sharp reduction in consumer schemes, better absorption of fixed manufacturing costs, and lower intensity of competitive discounts across room air conditioner players. "We expect Blue Star to do better than Voltas as far as the AC business is concerned," JM Financial said.

The company's consolidated revenue for the reporting quarter is likely to rise nearly 9% on year and over 26% on quarter to INR 30.56 billion, according to the average of estimates. The highest revenue estimate is INR 31.39 billion by YES Securities Ltd. and the lowest is INR 29.62 billion by Kotak Securities Ltd.

Brokerages expect the company's margins to be under pressure on a year-on-year basis amid high channel inventory and weak secondary sales. "The industry had 90 days of inventory, which is almost double of the usual," Nuvama Institutional Equities said. In the case of Blue Star, the brokerage estimated the inventory at about 50 days.

Nirmal Bang has cut its earnings estimates for Blue Star across 2025-26 (Apr-Mar) and FY28, citing room air conditioner inventory-led margin changes. For FY26, the brokerage lowered its net sales estimates by about 2% and cut the adjusted net profit estimate by nearly 9%.

Kotak Institutional Equities expects a mixed performance across Blue Star's segments in the December quarter. Revenue from the unitary cooling products segment, which includes room air conditioners and refrigerators, is expected to decline 2% on year in the quarter, a significant improvement from the 9.5% decline seen in the previous quarter.

Revenue from the electro-mechanical projects and commercial air-conditioning business is seen growing 12% on year, but the professional equipment and industrial solutions business is expected to decline 12% on year due to regulatory headwinds in the medical-technology segment, it added. 

Blue Star's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation for the December quarter is expected to rise nearly 6% on year and 21% sequentially to INR 2.21 billion, according to the average of estimates.

At 1220 IST, shares of Blue Star on the National Stock Exchange were at INR 1,662.30, down 0.3%. The company's shares have fallen nearly 7% since its September quarter results. The company will detail its Oct-Dec earnings on Thursday.

Of the eight brokerage reports on the company available with Informist, six have a 'buy' recommendation on the stock with an average target price of INR 2,005. This is 21% higher than the current market price. The remaining two brokerages have a 'hold' recommendation on the stock with an average target price of INR 1,926.

Following are the Oct-Dec earnings estimates for Blue Star from seven brokerages in descending order by the estimate of net profit in INR billion:

End

Edited by Avishek Dutta

For users of real-time market data terminals, Informist news is available exclusively on the NSE Cogencis WorkStation.

Cogencis news is now Informist news. This follows the acquisition of Cogencis Information Services Ltd. by NSE Data & Analytics Ltd., a 100% subsidiary of the National Stock Exchange of India Ltd. As a part of the transaction, the news department of Cogencis has been sold to Informist Media Pvt. Ltd.

Informist Media Tel +91 (22) 6985-4000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

© Informist Media Pvt. Ltd. 2026. All rights reserved.