Nestle Q1 Results Preview: Analysts See Revenue Rise, Significant Price Hikes To Offset Margin Pressure

Nestle India Ltd. is set to announce its results for the first quarter of the financial year ending March 2026 on Thursday.

Rural recovery is aiding a gradual volume growth towards low to mid-single digit levels in the June quarter, say analysts. Rural areas continue to grow ahead of slowly reviving urban demand.

Catalysts like a decline in food inflation and income tax cuts are likely to aid consumption recovery, they add. On the macro front, improving rural demand, food inflation at a multi-month low, and interest rate cuts are positive indicators.

• Revenue seen 6.5% higher at Rs 5,103 crore.

• Ebitda seen 6% higher at Rs 1,181 crore.

• Margin seen at 23.1%.

• Net profit seen 0.6% higher at Rs 751 crore.

• Goldman Sachs expects Nestle to deliver approximately 5% revenue growth, with muted volume growth at low-single digits.

• Ebitda margins are likely to expand on a year-over-year basis.

• Nestle has taken significant price hikes to offset margin pressure from high input costs such as palm oil and wheat.

• Key risks include market share loss or gain in instant noodles, changes in competitive intensity, successful expansion into new product categories, and regulatory changes regarding Nestle's infant nutrition growth.

• One of the FMCG companies which IIFL expects to report the highest Ebitda growth includes Nestle, rising approximately 6%. Margin is expected to remain flat at 23.2%.

• The company is expected to report sales growth of 6%, with volume growth of around 3%.

• Adjusted PAT is expected to grow 3% year-over-year.

• Margin pressure is likely to aggravate for Nestlé, said Emkay.

• Nestlé's performance is likely to remain muted amid the inflationary setting across its segments.

• To negate the inflationary stress, the company has selectively effected price hikes, although price growth is expected to be lower amid increased promotion intensity.

• Ebitda should see slight growth, while earnings should decline by about 6% year-over-year.

• Nuvama sees the palm oil duty cut (from 20% to 10%) along with softening palm oil prices to cool down raw material inflation for food companies, with Nestle as a key beneficiary.

• They reckon consolidated revenue would grow 4.7% year-over-year, while domestic sales are likely to grow 4-5% year-over-year.

• They expect price hikes of around 3%, mainly led by coffee and premium chocolates.

• As the urban slowdown tapers down, Nuvama argues that demand trends will further improve from that point onward.

• PL Capital expects sales to maintain a healthy growth trajectory led by volume and realisation.

• Gross margins are expected to remain stable sequentially, whereas Ebitda margins are likely to improve by 30 basis points year-over-year.

• Imputed realisation growth in the June quarter continues to see sequential improvement across.