More Stories

Informist, Monday, Jul. 27, 2026

By Ruchira Kagita

MUMBAI - Sales of Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd. are expected to have seen a healthy increase in the June quarter over a low base in the year-ago quarter. Volumes are also likely to recover in Apr-Jun. However, advertising spends are seen higher and, coupled with the impact of norms related to an inverted duty structure, the company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortisation margin may suffer slightly.

The company's net profit for the June quarter is expected to rise 5.5% on year to INR 3.38 billion, according to the average of estimates from 14 brokerages. The estimates vary from a high of INR 3.65 billion by Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd. to a low of INR 3.17 by Nirmal Bang Equities Pvt. Ltd.

The company's sales for the reporting quarter are seen rising 9% on year to INR 15.65 billion. The highest estimate for revenue is INR 16.03 billion from Systematix Shares and Stocks (India) Ltd. and the lowest is INR 15.14 billion from Axis Securities Ltd.

Colgate-Palmolive's volumes had contracted at least 2% in the year-ago June quarter, according to data from multiple brokerages. For the reporting quarter, volumes are expected to rise 3-7%.

The toothpaste seller's gross margin has been range-bound during the financial year 2025-26 (Apr-Mar), between 68.6% and 69.6%. For the June quarter, it may dip 40 basis points to 68.5%, Emkay Global Financial Services Ltd. said. For the year-ago quarter, the company had posted a gross margin of 68.6%.

"...despite the headwinds we are seeing and the currency challenges, we continue to expect we will deliver very good levels of gross margin, while EBITDA will be calibrated depending on the advertising support and the response we are getting on that spending," M.S. Jacob, chief financial officer of Colgate-Palmolive, had told analysts in May. The company's EBITDA margin for the June quarter is likely to be under pressure due to higher advertising costs and the adverse impact of inverted duty structure. Jacob had suggested higher advertising spends in the June quarter and ahead. These spends could account for 13% of total sales for the reporting quarter, implying 9% on-year growth, according to Kotak Securities Ltd.

Colgate-Palmolive remains focussed on premiumisation and it is increasing its promotional expenses to garner more attention to this portfolio, Prabha Narasimhan, the company's managing director, told analysts in May. The company sees scope for growth in the premium toothpaste and brush segments. The share of premium products has gone up over 35% in the past two years.

The company has hiked prices across its toothpaste packs by 4-5% amid high raw material and packaging costs due to the war in West Asia, according to media reports. The company raised prices of its popular toothpastes, including Colgate Dental Cream, Colgate Max Fresh, and Colgate Visible White. These increases could offset a hit to the company's margins from advertising costs and inverted duty framework.

The management's commentary on the company's plan to navigate through the ongoing supply-linked disruptions and its strategy to protect the company's margin will be in focus. Measures to boost toothpaste volumes in rural India will also be key factors to track. The company's volume growth in rural regions has been declining since the September quarter of FY26.

Colgate-Palmolive will detail its June quarter earnings on Wednesday. Shares of the company closed flat at INR 2,086.10 on the National Stock Exchange Friday. Since it announced its earnings for the March quarter, the stock has fallen slightly.

Of the 14 brokerage reports on the company available with Informist, six have a "hold" recommendation on the stock with an average target price of INR 2,279 per share. Five brokerages have a "buy" rating on the stock with the average target price of INR 2,541.

Following are the June quarter earnings estimates, in INR billion, for Colgate-Palmolive (India) from 14 brokerages in descending order of net profit:

End

Edited by Shubhayan Bhattacharya

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 (11) 4220-1000

Send comments to feedback@informistmedia.com

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