Polycab India, the market leader in wires and cables, has been establishing a significant presence in the FMEG (fast-moving electrical goods) space over the past few years, after starting FMEG sales in 2014. Its Q4FY22 results were above Trendlyne's Forecaster estimates and it ended FY22 on a high note with its highest ever annual revenues at Rs 12,293 crore.

FY22 was the first year of its five-year project titled ‘Leap’, where the company targets a revenue of Rs 20,000 crore in FY26. The project goals include growth of 1.5x in retail wires and 2x growth in the FMEG segment, and a contribution from exports of more than 10% of revenues.  The FY22 results showed progress - including growth in wires, FMEG and exports. The management highlighted that from the second year of project Leap, the company will explore opportunities to get into new product categories and/or inorganic expansions, which might increase the capex.

Quick Takes

• Revenues at Rs 3,986 crore rose by 35% YoY in Q4FY22 with 39% growth from the wires segment
• EBITDA at Rs 476 crore rose by 18% YoY in Q4FY22 despite raw material pricing challenges
• Revenues for FY22 at Rs 12,203.8 crore rose 39% on a YoY basis, the highest in the history of the company
• Launched economy brand Etira wires for semi-urban and rural markets to cater to price-sensitive markets
• With the project leap objective of 2x growth in the FMEG segment, recruited senior industry professionals from competitors to expand business

Recovery in construction and infrastructure boosts revenue

In Q4FY22, January was impacted by the Omicron variant. However as the impact of the third pandemic wave waned, housing and infrastructure projects resumed. The momentum in housing and infrastructure is expected to continue in the next few quarters despite rising costs and inflation. The housing wires segment posted strong growth led by continued momentum in real estate and renovation activities.

Revenues grew 35% in Q4FY22 to Rs 3,986.8 crore and net profits grew 17% YoY to Rs 322.2 crore. Exports business was twice of FY21 led by strong demand from sectors like oil & gas, renewables and infrastructure globally. Margins from different verticals continued to improve sequentially led by price increases and improved operating efficiency.

Polycab launched a new economy segment wire brand Etira in Q4FY22, covering market segments where it is not present currently. With this brand, Polycab hopes to deepen its presence in semi-urban and rural areas, where demand is relatively price-sensitive. It has already launched housing wires under this brand and plans to expand the product portfolio further. 

Annual revenue crossed the Rs 10,000 crore mark at Rs 12,293.7 crore in FY22, a YoY growth of 39%. In comparison, net profit grew YoY only by 3% to Rs 908.6 crore. This is attributed to the rising metal prices, which was a challenge for all cable and FMEG players in FY22.

Most wire and cable manufacturers were able to grow annual revenues above 25% in FY22. The market leader Havells saw maximum YoY revenue growth at 36.6%. Following close behind was Polycab, with YoY revenue growth of 35.8%. However, Polycab’s annual net profit growth was way below peers at 3% in FY22. With rising inflation affecting the entire industry, Polycab lags other wire and cable players in protecting margins in FY22.

Existing distribution network aids the growth of FMEG vertical

Polycab was only a wire and cable manufacturer for more than three decades. It forayed into the FMEG segment in FY14 and it now contributes 10% of total revenues as of FY22. The company is focusing aggressively on this vertical and expects its revenue contribution to improve over the next few years.

The FMEG vertical grew 9% YoY to Rs 379.2 crore in Q4FY22 from Rs. 346.8 crore in Q4FY21. 

The revenues from the FMEG vertical rose 20% YoY to Rs Rs 1,254.4 in FY22. This was aided by the expansion of its dealer and retail network to 4,600 and 2,05,000, respectively in FY22. A strong distribution strategy has helped Polycab build leadership in the wires and cables business. The revenue contribution from each of the regions it operates in is almost equal. Another factor at play here is that many existing dealers in the wires and business also became dealers for FMEG products leading to broad penetration of its FMEG products.

The fans, lights, and switchgear business posted healthy growth while conduit pipes saw momentum. Switches saw a decline due to supply challenges. The solar business achieved over 50% YoY growth in FY22. The rising metal prices were a challenge for Polycab in FY22. The company says that it reviews the change in commodity prices and the change in rupee against the US dollar. Based on this,  pricing actions are taken on a monthly basis. In Q4FY22, there was some correction in aluminum and copper prices after months of consistent rise.

Polycab’s capital expenditure guidance is Rs 300-350 crore for FY23. The funds will go towards increasing exports, backward integration in manufacturing, setting up switch manufacturing capabilities, and maintenance. In addition, the company is also incurring a one-time capex of Rs 200 crore for the new head office in Mumbai.

Experienced new hires join the team for FMEG expansion plan

One of Polycab’s targets from project leap is to double the growth of the FMEG vertical to a revenue of more than Rs 2,000 crore annually by FY26. To penetrate the highly competitive FMEG segment, Polycab has poached about 20 senior management professionals from the spectrum of FMEG competition. These include Vivek Sharma from Panasonic, who is the new Deputy Managing Director of the FMEG vertical. Tapas Roy Chowdhury from Havells is now the president for the fans division at Polycab. Deepak Mitra was hired from Crompton to lead sales in rural markets. Vipul Aggarwal from Havells is now vice president for supply chain at Polycab.

Polycab ended FY22 on a strong note and is working towards meeting the goals laid out in project ‘Leap’. Though the company delivered highest annual revenues in FY22, its profit growth was way below peers in wires and cables like Havells, KEI Industries and V-Guard Industries. In the FMEG vertical competition is intense with Havells, V-Guard Industries, Finolex Cables and a host of unorganised players as well. How it holds out against the competition in both these verticals, as well as its profitability vis-a-vis its peers in the next few quarters, will define whether Polycab is a suitable stock for a long term play in the wires and FMEG space.