HUL Q3 Results: Stock falls 5%, drags Nifty 50 down, after topline miss

India's largest FMCG company, Hindustan Unilever Ltd. reported its December quarter results on Thursday, February 12, largely in-line with muted expectations. Underlying volume growth came in at 4%, higher than the CNBC-TV18 poll estimate of 2% to 3%.

Net profit for the quarter stood at ₹2,590 crore, marginally ahead of the CNBC-TV18 poll of ₹2,560 crore. However, profit declined 13.7% year-on-year from ₹3,001 crore last year.

HUL said that PAT was driven by one-off impacts from the company's portfolio transformation actions.

Standalone revenue came in at ₹15,805 crore, slightly below the CNBC-TV18 poll estimate of ₹16,035 crore. The topline grew 2.6% compared to the same quarter last year.

EBITDA rose 2% year-on-year to ₹3,640 crore, missing expectations of ₹3,725 crore. EBITDA margin stood at 23%, down 20 basis points from a year ago.



“Revenue growth is nearly half of what was estimated,” said analyst Deven Choksey. “The numbers are disappointing,” he added, citing that rural sales outperformed the urban segment.

The company reiterated its focus on volume-led growth.

Management indicated that FY27 is expected to be better than FY26 and said consolidated margins are likely to remain within the guided range.

HUL will also acquire the remaining 49% stake in Zywie Ventures for ₹824 crore.

Shares of Hindustan Unilever fell 5% to ₹2,355.60 following the results. The stock is up 4% year-to-date, trades at 50x FY27 estimates, and remains about 12% below its 52-week high.