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What is the story about?
Tilaknagar Industries, an alcoholic beverage company headquartered in Mumbai, Maharashtra, expects to deliver low double-digit volume growth this year and remains on track to achieve an earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (EBITDA) of around ₹1,000 crore by the financial year 2028-29 (FY29), according to Chairman and Managing Director Amit Dahanukar.
Net debt is expected to decline to around ₹1,700 crore by the end of the current financial year 2026-27 (FY27), supported by business integration and operating performance.
Dahanukar said the outlook shared earlier continues to remain intact despite margin pressure during the quarter.
The company completed the integration of Imperial Blue, with the business now operating as a single consolidated entity. Dahanukar said the company expects EBITDA margins to recover after inflationary pressures affected the June quarter.
The company reported net debt of ₹2,100 crore at the end of the April-June 2026 quarter. Dahanukar said the figure is likely to remain broadly unchanged through the first half before falling by year-end.
The company is also awaiting a price revision in Telangana, where it has not received a price hike for three years. Dahanukar said discussions with the state government are ongoing and expressed confidence that a revision could come during the second quarter. Tilaknagar Industries has around ₹550 crore of overdue receivables from Telangana, and any improvement in collections could accelerate debt reduction, he added.
Commenting on Bihar, Dahanukar said Tilaknagar Industries had no exposure to the state before acquiring Imperial Blue. However, the acquired brand previously sold more than one million cases there, making the state a potential growth market if prohibition is lifted in the future.
Tilaknagar Industries currently has a market capitalisation of ₹11,053.42 crore. The stock has declined more than 12% over the past year.
These are edited excerpts from the interview.Q: In May, post quarter four of FY26, you spoke about high single- to low double-digit volume growth and revenue growth of about 200 to 250 basis points over and above the volume growth. Does that hold after the quarter one performance?A: Yes, I think that definitely holds. We expect volume growth for this year to be in the low double digits, with revenue growth around 200 basis points above that.
Q: Is this organic, or does this include Imperial Blue?A: So now, when we report numbers, we report them as consolidated numbers. Even for the recently concluded quarter – quarter one numbers have been fully consolidated. The business is now integrated. We are operating as one entity.
Q: Just give us the FY29 number then, because if you annualise the ₹1,000 crore revenue for the quarter, you're already at a big jump. So then, what is FY29, for which I think you provided the aspirational margins, etc.? What would the numbers look like? Give us that. I mean, we'll not hold you to it. Top line and bottom line. A: Let's keep in mind that a large acquisition and integration is behind us now, so I believe that the company is now headed in the right direction. We expect CAGR volume growth to be in the low double digits, with revenue growth exceeding that.
The exit EBITDA margin for Q4, was 15.5%. Of course, we've had a bit of a correction in Q1 on account of the inflationary pressures, which everyone has had to deal with. But going forward, we do expect the margins to move significantly higher, into the upper teens, in the range of 16% to 18%, which is the guidance we are providing for FY29.
Q: No, we have the guidance. It's all there in the presentation. But we're just trying to get a sense of what the absolute numbers may look like. If you want to give a band, because we can work out the mechanical numbers, but from your perspective, if you want to give a range, that's great. It'll help for both the top line and the bottom line, I think.A: For FY29, we can look at EBITDA in the vicinity of ₹1,000 crore. I think that would be the range.
Q: You're reporting this exceptional number because of the integration. Last quarter, this quarter, and in the coming quarters, we'll see it, or is it done now?A: So, we will see it. Of course, it will be much reduced because Q4 was exceptional as we were in the process of transitioning from the earlier arrangements to our own arrangements. So, you'll see a decline in Q1 versus Q4, and in Q2 you'll see a further decline. By the end of this financial year, we would be done with it.
Q: You're giving us that FY29 guidance of ₹1,000 crore, but the Street will be wondering about the trajectory in the near term. So, let's try to pull that number out of you. You're doing a quarterly run rate of around ₹150 crore. Traditionally, things gradually improve and hopefully input costs cool off in the second half of the year. So, on an exit run rate, should we be looking at around ₹180 crore to ₹200 crore of quarterly EBITDA, which would mean that for FY27 itself, the EBITDA number could be in the vicinity of around ₹650 crore to ₹680 crore? Would that be the aspiration?A: Yes. I think that would certainly be the aspiration. Our Q1 EBITDA has been ₹150 crore, and let's keep in mind that there was almost a 150-basis-point impact on account of the inflationary pressures. Also keep in mind that Q1 is usually the softer quarter for the entire year, given that it's the beer season. I think the spirits business is slightly lower in Q1, so I think that's a very reasonable estimate.
Q: ₹650 crore to ₹680 crore of EBITDA—that's the aspiration. What about the debt number? Will it gradually start reducing from here on? If you could give us an outlook on that front. The other thing I wanted to ask you about is the price hike. You have a lot of exposure to Telangana, if I'm not mistaken, and since input costs have gone up, you would be lobbying for a price hike, right? Should we be expecting something in the coming quarter? So, on both debt and price hikes.A: Two questions. The first one is with regard to the debt position. Our net debt, as of Q1, is ₹2,100 crore. I don't expect any significant change for the next quarter. So, at the end of H1, we should be approximately in that same vicinity.
But by the end of this year, we have clear visibility that the net debt should be around ₹1,700 crore, and that's assuming there is no improvement in the Telangana receivable position. We are all aware that the outstanding receivables in Telangana are significant, and our company, being a large player in Telangana, has significant exposure there as well.
Q: What are the receivables from Telangana? And what about the price hike?A: Regarding the price hike, it's been three years since we received one in Telangana, so we are in active discussions with the government, and we are quite confident that we should have a price hike in Q2.
As far as the overdue receivables for our company in Telangana are concerned, they stand at about ₹550 crore, so they are quite significant. If there's improvement there, we'll see a much sharper reduction in the net debt figure.
For the full interview, watch the accompanying videoCatch all the latest updates from the stock market here
Net debt is expected to decline to around ₹1,700 crore by the end of the current financial year 2026-27 (FY27), supported by business integration and operating performance.
Dahanukar said the outlook shared earlier continues to remain intact despite margin pressure during the quarter.
The company completed the integration of Imperial Blue, with the business now operating as a single consolidated entity. Dahanukar said the company expects EBITDA margins to recover after inflationary pressures affected the June quarter.
The company reported net debt of ₹2,100 crore at the end of the April-June 2026 quarter. Dahanukar said the figure is likely to remain broadly unchanged through the first half before falling by year-end.
The company is also awaiting a price revision in Telangana, where it has not received a price hike for three years. Dahanukar said discussions with the state government are ongoing and expressed confidence that a revision could come during the second quarter. Tilaknagar Industries has around ₹550 crore of overdue receivables from Telangana, and any improvement in collections could accelerate debt reduction, he added.
Commenting on Bihar, Dahanukar said Tilaknagar Industries had no exposure to the state before acquiring Imperial Blue. However, the acquired brand previously sold more than one million cases there, making the state a potential growth market if prohibition is lifted in the future.
Tilaknagar Industries currently has a market capitalisation of ₹11,053.42 crore. The stock has declined more than 12% over the past year.
These are edited excerpts from the interview.Q: In May, post quarter four of FY26, you spoke about high single- to low double-digit volume growth and revenue growth of about 200 to 250 basis points over and above the volume growth. Does that hold after the quarter one performance?A: Yes, I think that definitely holds. We expect volume growth for this year to be in the low double digits, with revenue growth around 200 basis points above that.
Q: Is this organic, or does this include Imperial Blue?A: So now, when we report numbers, we report them as consolidated numbers. Even for the recently concluded quarter – quarter one numbers have been fully consolidated. The business is now integrated. We are operating as one entity.
Q: Just give us the FY29 number then, because if you annualise the ₹1,000 crore revenue for the quarter, you're already at a big jump. So then, what is FY29, for which I think you provided the aspirational margins, etc.? What would the numbers look like? Give us that. I mean, we'll not hold you to it. Top line and bottom line. A: Let's keep in mind that a large acquisition and integration is behind us now, so I believe that the company is now headed in the right direction. We expect CAGR volume growth to be in the low double digits, with revenue growth exceeding that.
The exit EBITDA margin for Q4, was 15.5%. Of course, we've had a bit of a correction in Q1 on account of the inflationary pressures, which everyone has had to deal with. But going forward, we do expect the margins to move significantly higher, into the upper teens, in the range of 16% to 18%, which is the guidance we are providing for FY29.
Q: No, we have the guidance. It's all there in the presentation. But we're just trying to get a sense of what the absolute numbers may look like. If you want to give a band, because we can work out the mechanical numbers, but from your perspective, if you want to give a range, that's great. It'll help for both the top line and the bottom line, I think.A: For FY29, we can look at EBITDA in the vicinity of ₹1,000 crore. I think that would be the range.
Q: You're reporting this exceptional number because of the integration. Last quarter, this quarter, and in the coming quarters, we'll see it, or is it done now?A: So, we will see it. Of course, it will be much reduced because Q4 was exceptional as we were in the process of transitioning from the earlier arrangements to our own arrangements. So, you'll see a decline in Q1 versus Q4, and in Q2 you'll see a further decline. By the end of this financial year, we would be done with it.
Q: You're giving us that FY29 guidance of ₹1,000 crore, but the Street will be wondering about the trajectory in the near term. So, let's try to pull that number out of you. You're doing a quarterly run rate of around ₹150 crore. Traditionally, things gradually improve and hopefully input costs cool off in the second half of the year. So, on an exit run rate, should we be looking at around ₹180 crore to ₹200 crore of quarterly EBITDA, which would mean that for FY27 itself, the EBITDA number could be in the vicinity of around ₹650 crore to ₹680 crore? Would that be the aspiration?A: Yes. I think that would certainly be the aspiration. Our Q1 EBITDA has been ₹150 crore, and let's keep in mind that there was almost a 150-basis-point impact on account of the inflationary pressures. Also keep in mind that Q1 is usually the softer quarter for the entire year, given that it's the beer season. I think the spirits business is slightly lower in Q1, so I think that's a very reasonable estimate.
Q: ₹650 crore to ₹680 crore of EBITDA—that's the aspiration. What about the debt number? Will it gradually start reducing from here on? If you could give us an outlook on that front. The other thing I wanted to ask you about is the price hike. You have a lot of exposure to Telangana, if I'm not mistaken, and since input costs have gone up, you would be lobbying for a price hike, right? Should we be expecting something in the coming quarter? So, on both debt and price hikes.A: Two questions. The first one is with regard to the debt position. Our net debt, as of Q1, is ₹2,100 crore. I don't expect any significant change for the next quarter. So, at the end of H1, we should be approximately in that same vicinity.
But by the end of this year, we have clear visibility that the net debt should be around ₹1,700 crore, and that's assuming there is no improvement in the Telangana receivable position. We are all aware that the outstanding receivables in Telangana are significant, and our company, being a large player in Telangana, has significant exposure there as well.
Q: What are the receivables from Telangana? And what about the price hike?A: Regarding the price hike, it's been three years since we received one in Telangana, so we are in active discussions with the government, and we are quite confident that we should have a price hike in Q2.
As far as the overdue receivables for our company in Telangana are concerned, they stand at about ₹550 crore, so they are quite significant. If there's improvement there, we'll see a much sharper reduction in the net debt figure.
For the full interview, watch the accompanying videoCatch all the latest updates from the stock market here
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