Colgate India January-March Profit Slips 6.5% On Softer Urban Demand

Colgate-Palmolive (India) Ltd. posted a muted set of numbers for the March quarter, with net profit falling 6.5% on year to ₹3.55 billion due to sluggish urban demand and rising competition. While profit edged past the Street estimate of ₹3.53 billion, revenue came in at ₹14.63 billion; falling short of the expected ₹15.1 billion and marking the first year-on-year decline in 19 quarters.

Sequentially, net profit was up nearly 10%, and revenue was flat.

For the full year ended March, Colgate reported an 8.6% on-year rise in net profit to ₹14.37 billion and a 6.3% increase in net sales to ₹60 billion.

In the March quarter, the company’s other income fell 16% on year to ₹191 million, while for 2024-25, it almost doubled to ₹1.4 billion.

Total expenditure for the quarter was slightly higher at ₹10 billion but down about 4% from the previous quarter. Raw material costs were marginally lower on year but rose 12% sequentially to ₹4 billion. Purchases of stock-in-trade jumped 25% on year to ₹653 million. Advertising spend rose 7% to ₹1.8 billion but dropped 10% sequentially.

Despite headwinds, Colgate said its toothbrush portfolio posted another strong year and its margins remained resilient. The company declared an interim dividend of ₹27 per share.

MD and CEO Prabha Narasimhan said toothpaste volumes grew in mid-single digits, and while near-term macro challenges remain, the company expects market conditions to improve gradually later this year.