Volume surge masked by margin compression; commodity pass-through fragile

Wholesales 108.7K units +26% YoY; HCV +22%, ILMCV +16%, SCV +35%, CV Passenger +23%, exports +35%

EBIT margin down only 20 bps despite 340 bps commodity drag; price/mix +280 bps offset most of the hit

₹1,114 Cr Q1 FY27 vs negative ₹1,796 Cr Q1 FY26 = ₹2,910 Cr swing

SCV EV retails 3,200+ units (4x YoY); overall EV units ~3x; electric buses 850+ orders

Management: 'further cost pressure ahead' on steel, rubber; July 2.5% hike 'very confident' will pass, but cumulative increase 'quite significant' and pricing limits approach acknowledged

Prior 'single-digit growth' guidance crushed with 26% Q1. Driven by new product launches (Ace Gold+, Intra V40, Intra EV), Indonesia order, bus tenders won.

EBIT margin fell 80 bps YoY and 60 bps EBITDA YoY, vs prior expectation of stable-to-improving. Price hikes (2.5% Q2 vs 2% prior quarter) now playing catch-up.

Q1 FCF ₹1,100 Cr swung from -₹1,800 Cr, but Indonesia advance one-off. Structural WC improvement real but magnitude uncertain.

EV orders 3,400+ CV + 850+ bus. TCO parity reached. But scale 'pretty low'; profitability to lag for 'some quarters.' Not yet accretive.

Very early to talk about H2. Q2 likely double-digit. Industry growth uncertain post-September GST comparisons. No H2 commit.

EV demand very positive, buses 850+. Intra EV capacity in-house not issue; bottleneck is battery cells from China (global EV surge). July 2.5% increase confident to pass through.

Profitability lower due to low scale, but with higher localization and cell localization over time, should improve. Endeavor to deliver all with PLI.

Delicate balance. Cost containment first line, but limited room—must raise prices. Cumulative hike this year 'quite significant.' Model-year 26 with improved TCO helped stabilize prices.

Underlying fundamentals strong. E-way bills +12.4%, diesel consumption up, FASTag up. All point to robust freight availability correlated with GDP growth.

EV retail financing improving month-over-month. More financier confidence in tech/product. Offering battery warranty > loan tenor, giving high comfort. Book quality of EV loans robust.

Difficult to differentiate. Large fleet owners replace every 4–6 years for TCO benefit; old trucks cascade to smaller owners on shorter routes. Overall demand up—freight availability strong. Mix of both.

Some carryover from Q4. WC discipline + good operating profit helped. Indonesia advance one-off. Traditionally Q1–Q2 burn WC, but discipline offset it. Mix of structural and transient.

Two-three years is long. Doing work in Africa, Indonesia. Using Indonesia entry to seed other segments. Very early for outlook. Active demand generation and new product launches planned.

Tamil Nadu improving month-over-month, near normal last month. Operator profitability: diesel increases being passed through; fleet profitability recovering. Anecdotal, no index.

Will always remain our endeavour.

Based on July 'robust' sales despite monsoon. H2 uncertain due to September GST comp base last year. No full-year target stated.

Order firm; 2,000 units shipped Q1; ramping expected. Large structural growth driver contingent on execution and commodity costs.

July 2.5% price increase 'very confident' to pass through, but cumulative increase 'quite significant.' Pricing limits acknowledged. Commodity headwind ongoing (steel, rubber).

Scale currently low; cell localization deferred. No margin target for EV business stated. Improvement trajectory vague.

Q1 ₹515 Cr (standalone) / ₹554 Cr inclusive. Within guided range. Investment focus: new products, EV capacity, international expansion.

Steel, aluminum, copper inflation triggered 340 bps EBIT headwind in Q1. July 2.5% price hike expected to pass, but pricing limits acknowledged ('very difficult to answer in binary'). If commodities rise faster or demand weakens, price hikes may not fully offset.

Global EV demand surge (including China) has created battery cell supply tightness. Intra EV supply-constrained despite in-house production capacity. Lead time for cell import and battery conversion 'pretty high.' Risk: if not resolved by Q2 end, volume upside in SCV EV capped.

EV volumes growing (3,400+ orders, 3x YoY growth, 850+ buses) but profitability 'different from ICE trucks because scale is pretty low.' Cell localization deferred; cross-subsidy from ICE business masking true EV margin. Risk: if scale doesn't grow fast enough or localization delayed, EV drag widens; entire CV portfolio margin compressed.

Cumulative price increase 'quite significant' per management. Q1 prices largely passed through; July 2.5% hike 'very confident' but analyst questioned if ceiling reached. Further commodity inflation could force additional hikes, risking volume/customer pushback.

70,000-unit Indonesia order is material growth driver over FY27–FY28, but execution contingent on: (1) sustained shipping logistics (mentioned 'heightened geopolitical tensions'), (2) regulatory approvals for Iveco acquisition (final stage, expected Aug 2026), (3) customer payment/financing stability. Ramp-up 'significantly' underway but only 2,000 units shipped Q1.