Usha Martin Q1: consolidated PAT ₹142 Cr, up 41% YoY as EBITDA margin nears 20% target

Usha Martin opened FY27 with a strong print. Consolidated revenue rose to ₹1,033 Cr, up 16.4% YoY (from ₹887 Cr) and 5.5% sequentially, while net profit climbed 40.9% YoY to ₹142.04 Cr from ₹100.81 Cr a year ago. Crucially there were no exceptional items on either side of the year-on-year comparison, so the reported growth is also the underlying growth — this is a clean beat, not a one-off flattered number. Net margin expanded to 13.75% from 11.17% a year ago, and operating (EBITDA) margin widened to roughly 19.8% from ~15.6% in Q1 FY26, driven by a richer value-added product mix and lower finance costs (₹3.9 Cr vs ₹6.25 Cr) off the net-cash balance sheet. The print beats the Street: Univest/Uniresearch had modelled revenue near ₹953 Cr and PAT around ₹98 Cr, so both topline and bottom line came in comfortably ahead. It also validates management's April guidance — the ~19.8% EBITDA margin sits just under the raised ≥20% target and the mix-led value growth is consistent with the 10-12% volume-growth roadmap in high-value segments (oil & offshore, cranes, elevators). Segment detail confirms the story: Wire & Wire Ropes did essentially all the work, with segment result of ₹192.06 Cr versus a negligible Others contribution. The one soft optic — PAT down ~4% QoQ against Q4's ₹148 Cr — is not operational: Q4 carried ₹26.66 Cr of other income (including ₹19.63 Cr interest on a tax refund plus a Chennai land-sale gain) against just ₹8.56 Cr this quarter, and Q4 also booked a ₹3.52 Cr exceptional labour-code charge. Stripping the one-offs, sequential operating profit was roughly flat, so the QoQ dip is a comparison artefact, not a slowdown. Standalone told a slightly softer version (PAT ₹97.60 Cr, +37.7% YoY) — within range of the consolidated read, no material divergence. Alongside the results the board's earlier actions stay in play: an Aug 13 record date for the FY26 dividend and the 40th AGM on Aug 20. The overhang worth watching remains the ED/CBI/PMLA proceedings on historic iron-ore-fines land (₹190.37 Cr attached, no financial adjustment taken) — legal, not operational, but live with hearings through August. Management hosts the earnings call on July 28.