Sudarshan Chemicals (which is in 11 stock screeners) saw its income from operations from the quarter at Rs 389 crores vs Rs 377 crores for the same period last year, a growth of 3%. On a consolidated basis for FY19, the company saw income from operations of Rs 1,477 crores as compared to Rs1,329 crores, a growth of 11% YoY. Rs. 7.7 crores were gained from hedge accounting. The company's export-domestic split in markets is 53:47. Verticals in order of size are Coatings, Plastics, Inks and Cosmetics.

The company has been experiencing competitive pressure in commodities, but is expecting to benefit in the chemicals space from the US-China trade spat. It is expecting to particularly benefit in pigments, where a US duty imposition of 25% provides an opportunity for Indian players to compete. However there may be some delays in market gains - existing buyers in the US have built up inventory in anticipation of the tensions intensifying, and that excess inventory is only likely to dry up by August. If the trade tensions get resolved within a quarter, Sudarshan Chemicals may not see the success in expanding the US market that it is hoping for. 

The industry overall has witnessed rising raw material costs, made worse, management says, by supply disruptions in the last one year due to plant shutdowns in China. The rise in raw material prices were not immediately passed on to customers, which resulted in the firm taking a hit in gross margins. The company says it has taken cost management initiatives to maintain EBITDA margins in Q4 and for the year overall.

Capex and inventory: The company completed Rs 72 crores in capital expenditure last year, and fresh projects worth Rs 200 crores are under implementation, of which approx 75% is earmarked for capacity addition. On the inventory side, in FY19, there was a deliberate inventory build-up  the company says was to de-risk the supply chain, given the trend in raw material prices.