Latest news with #UltraTech
Time of India
5 days ago
- Business
- Time of India
Sebi rule: UltraTech must sell 7% in India Cements
CHENNAI/MUMBAI: India Cements' new promoter, UltraTech Cement, will need to sell about 7 per cent of its stake, worth over Rs 667 crore, to meet the minimum public shareholding rules set by the capital market regulator. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now UltraTech currently owns about 82 per cent of India Cements, and the rules mandate that listed companies must have at least 25 per cent of their shares owned by the public. UltraTech's stake went over 75 per cent after an open offer that was triggered when its holdings in India Cements crossed a specific threshold. The open offer for an extra 26 per cent stake to India Cements' public shareholders was oversubscribed, which was rare in such offers. India Cements has until Feb 3, 2026, to ensure enough shares are held by the public. It can do this through a secondary share sale, preferential allotment, rights issue, or bonus issue. If it chooses rights or bonus issues, UltraTech will need to give up its rights to buy those shares. Currently, India Cements shares are trading at Rs 333 each, making the 7 per cent stake worth Rs 667 crore. An UltraTech spokesperson said according to Sebi regulations, at least 25 per cent of India Cements' equity must be held by the public within 12 months after the open offer ends, which was on February 4 of this year. "UltraTech will ensure compliance within the stipulated timeline." Data from Prime Infobase showed that in FY25, more than a dozen companies saw promoter holdings drop from over 75 per cent to 75 per cent or less. These companies include Sanghi Industries under Adani Group, Aditya Birla Sun Life AMC, Bikaji Foods International, and Cello World. UltraTech, part of the Aditya Birla conglomerate, took control of the loss-making India Cements in the Christmas of 2024. Tired of too many ads? go ad free now It paid Rs 9,060 crore for the acquisition, which expanded UltraTech's reach in the growing southern market. During its earnings call in April, UltraTech CFO Atul Daga shared that India Cements reached Ebitda breakeven in the first quarter after its takeover. It also sold over one million metric tons of cement in March, which he called a "second case of sweet success." Starting in April, with prices rising in the southern market, he believes this will lead to even better results for the company. In FY26, India Cements aims to surpass Rs 500 in Ebitda per metric ton. By FY27, it expects to cross Rs 800, and then hit a four-digit figure.
Time of India
10-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
UltraTech Cem Share Price Live Updates: UltraTech Cement's Volume Analysis
10 Jun 2025 | 08:43:38 AM IST Join us on the UltraTech Cem Stock Liveblog, your hub for real-time updates and comprehensive analysis on a prominent stock. Stay in the know with the latest information about UltraTech Cem, including: Last traded price 11260.0, Market capitalization: 328835.43, Volume: 209231, Price-to-earnings ratio 50.86, Earnings per share 219.39. Our liveblog provides a well-rounded view of UltraTech Cem by incorporating both fundamental and technical indicators. Be the first to receive breaking news that can impact UltraTech Cem's performance in the market. Our expert analysis and recommendations empower you to make informed investment choices. Stay informed and stay ahead with the UltraTech Cem Stock Liveblog. The data points are updated as on 08:43:38 AM IST, 10 Jun 2025 Show more
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Business Standard
08-06-2025
- Business
- Business Standard
Cement firms' Q4 volumes grow, but realisations decline amid weak pricing
Top Indian cement companies reported a healthy sales volume growth in the quarter ended March (Q4FY25), but saw a decline in their realisations amid weak pricing. Excluding Shree Cement (whose blended realisation remained flat year-on-year), UltraTech Cement, Ambuja Cements, JK Cement, Dalmia Bharat, Ramco Cements, and Birla Corp posted decreased realisations on a Y-o-Y basis. In Q4FY25, pan-India cement prices stood at Rs 362/bag, down by 3 per cent Y-o-Y. The South was hit the most with a 10 per cent decline in prices, according to Crisil Intelligence. Quarter-on-quarter (Q-o-Q), the prices grew by 2 per cent, with Q4FY25 being a seasonally strong quarter. According to Khushbu Lakhotia, director, India Ratings & Research, the cement price reduction was largely driven by a reduction in power and fuel costs, given the benign coal and petcoke prices. 'With a slow start to demand, large capacity additions and an increasing competitive intensity in FY25, cement prices witnessed the sharpest decline in nearly two decades. Prices remained weak as industry players focused on maximising sales volumes and market share growth,' Lakhotia said. UltraTech commissioned 17.40 million tonnes per annum (mtpa) capacity during FY25, while Ambuja surpassed 100 mtpa. Dalmia Bharat's capacity in FY25 increased to 49.5 mtpa from 44.6 mtpa in FY24. According to analysts at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, the consolidation in India's cement sector and the weak demand have put pressure on the pricing environment. The overall cement demand, however, improved by 4 per cent during Q4FY25, leading to higher volumes. Apart from Dalmia Bharat and Ramco Cements, all the other top firms posted an increase of anywhere between 3.3 and 16.9 per cent in their sales volume due to improved cement demand. Overall, the industry volume grew by 5 per cent Y-o-Y. UltraTech's volume growth was driven by its acquisitions of India Cements and Kesoram, while Ambuja's growth was on the back of Orient Cement and Penna Cement. However, blended earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation, and amortisation (Ebitda) of UltraTech and Ambuja declined on a Y-o-Y basis, despite lower input costs and better operating leverage, while that of Shree, Dalmia Bharat, and JK Cement improved. An industry expert, on the condition of anonymity, stated that the profitability of UltraTech and Ambuja saw only a limited impact from acquisitions. The overall performance of the two cement giants remained strong amid a comparatively low share of India Cements in UltraTech's total volumes and Ambuja completing the acquisition of Orient Cement in April 2025 (Q1FY26). Sequentially, all the top cement makers witnessed an improved, positive growth in blended Ebitda. All the cement firms were able to reduce total costs by 1-7.2 per cent Y-o-Y in Q4FY25 due to lower input costs, particularly that of fuel, and improved operating leverage. However, despite a reduction of around Rs 200/t in costs, the industry's Ebitda improved only marginally by Rs 20-30/t due to the continued weakness in cement prices, according to Lakhotia. Overall in FY25, the prices declined by 7 per cent Y-o-Y to Rs 340/bag. Meanwhile, the top companies' volumes grew anywhere between less than 1 per cent and over 10 per cent Y-o-Y. The blended Ebitda and realisations also declined. The companies managed to reduce their total costs in FY25. For FY26, the companies are optimistic about improved cement demand on the back of the government's focus on infrastructure and housing demand and price environment. According to the analysts at Mirae Asset Sharekhan, with the return of government capex, the demand and pricing are expected to improve. The margins of the whole sector are expected to improve from here on and will increase profitability. UltraTech's management stated that prices showed sequential improvement in April 2025 across most regions, notably in the southern markets, although overall realisation growth remained modest. It stated that April pricing trends were better compared to both March-end levels and the Q4 FY25 average. According to the analysts at JM Financial, the industry's profitability is likely to improve further in Q1FY26. Pan-India average cement prices have increased by 4 per cent Q-o-Q in the quarter so far (over Rs 15/bag), mainly led by sharp price hikes in the South and the East, while other regions were broadly flat on a sequential basis. 'With the early onset of the monsoon, we see an increasing possibility of some price reversal over the next few days,' the analysts noted. According to Lakhotia, the decadal high-capacity additions announced by companies, in addition to the ramp-up of the acquired assets that were operating at sub-optimal capacities earlier, could limit the uptick in prices despite a mid-to-high single-digit demand growth. 'Price hikes were taken by companies over April-May, that could support realisations in Q1FY26, although moderations are likely over June-July with the early onset of monsoons.' Going ahead, the cement firms have planned aggressive capacity expansion plans with UltraTech leading the pack. The company aims to expand its grey cement capacity to 195.8 mtpa from the current 183.4 mtpa. Ambuja aims to expand its capacity to 118 mtpa by FY26, while Shree Cement aims to enhance its capacity to over 80 mtpa by 2028 from the current capacity of 62.8 mtpa. Dalmia Bharat is eying a capacity of 75 mtpa by FY28 from the current 49.5 mtpa.
Time of India
03-06-2025
- Business
- Time of India
UltraTech's grounded approach to marketing cement in India
HighlightsUltraTech Cement, a subsidiary of Aditya Birla Group, has shifted its marketing strategy from hyperbolic advertising to focusing on consumer needs, especially targeting first-time home builders with the campaign 'UltraTech Se Pucho', which leverages technology for personalized assistance. The brand has successfully engaged with rural markets, achieving over 12 million interactions through its tech-enabled solutions, and has received 8,900 valid entries in its 'Yashasvi Sarpanch' campaign, highlighting its commitment to empowering local community leaders. UltraTech Cement's 'Banega Toh Badhega India' campaign, featuring collaborations with popular influencers, has reached over 500 million people and significantly increased the brand's perception as a nation-builder, demonstrating the impact of infrastructure on societal progress. In the last decade, we have seen cement brands using hyperbole as their central advertising theme. The Ancient Greek Gods must be proud of all of them for using it to its optimum. For those who are wondering, like many good things, the term hyperbole also comes from Ancient Greek. These ads took center stage for their creativity, but their popularity also died down just as quickly. While many brands from the category were experimenting with this hook, Aditya Birla Group 's UltraTech went back to the boardroom to identify its fundamentals and need gaps. UltraTech is not just a business-to-business (B2B) brand. In fact, today, 70% of its business is business-to-consumer (B2C), and two-thirds of it comes from rural pockets. That meant they had a wider consumer base to cater to. According to the research done by UltraTech, buying a house today is no longer just a retirement plan. The average age of an Indian building a home is 35. That's a consumer segment that experiments and is making the biggest investment of their lives to prove their 'competence to society.' The brand also understood that category knowledge is considerably low amongst its consumer base. According to Ajay Dang , President and Head of Marketing at Ultratech, that was enough groundwork for his 50-member marketing team and him to draw up strategies that would drive business growth as well as set the right tone for the brand. "Most marketers are obsessed with their brand, product, and category. We are out there to solve our own problems and those of the people who come to us for a purchase. Also, do remember consumers treat brands as leaders who behave like leaders," said Dang. Strategies for first-timers In the past year, UltraTech has used various marketing funnels to bring its insights to life. For instance, the brand identified that building a home is a significant, often uncertain, undertaking for first-timers. Common initial questions revolve around material selection, budgeting, and avoiding mistakes. To address this, the brand launched a mega campaign called, "UltraTech Se Pucho," positioning itself as a supportive partner by offering comprehensive, tech-enabled assistance throughout the home-building process. The brand leveraged emerging technologies like AI Vision, Augmented Reality (AR), and Generative AI to deliver personalized, location-specific, and contextually relevant advice at scale. Capitalizing on its extensive outdoor presence (1.9 billion brand logos across hoardings, wall paintings, dealership boards, cement bags, etc.), UltraTech transformed these static logos into accessible home-building experts via mobile scans. The platform also integrated its digital ecosystem with over 7,000 physical UltraTech dealerships, ensuring access to expertise regardless of the user's location. This distributed execution effectively utilized India's growing mobile-first ecosystem, particularly in Tier 2, Tier 3, and rural markets. Results? Over 12 million home builders interacted with the platform, demonstrating high repeat usage due to personalized, real-time assistance. More than 50% of interactions originated from rural and semi-urban regions, highlighting the solution's success in democratizing access to expert guidance. The campaign achieved a reach of over 55 million people, with digital and offline touchpoints working together for maximum exposure. Dang believes this was only possible because they went on the ground to understand the pulse of the consumers. "Most marketers think of themselves as storytellers. However, I believe great storytellers are first great listeners. We've been very deep listeners. We bunk a lot of quote-unquote traditional insights because we've genuinely heard people out. I believe in a way we are also nudging the rest of the category a bit in the process," he said. Reaching the grassroots India's villages, home to 65% of the population, possess significant untapped potential and aspirations. However, infrastructural gaps, geographic remoteness, and limited access to expertise often hinder the realization of these aspirations. UltraTech aimed to align with the developmental goals of rural India, striving to foster tangible progress and reinforce its brand philosophy: 'Gaon Banega Toh Desh Badhega'. The brand sought to position itself as a trusted partner in enabling village transformation by bridging infrastructure gaps and building emotional connections. UltraTech targeted key influencers in these communities: Gram Sarpanches. These individuals are not only key decision-makers and community trust builders but are also considered aspirational figures. The brand also targeted rural independent home builders. Through the " Yashasvi Sarpanch " campaign, UltraTech celebrates, empowers, and spotlights the stories of Sarpanches as grassroots changemakers. This was facilitated through a call for entries across various media outlets and was rolled out in Rajasthan, to begin with. A dedicated digital platform was created to manage nominations, publish entries, display the jury, evaluation criteria, and showcase winners, ensuring transparency and accessibility. A voice-led content innovation using WhatsApp voice notes was implemented to deliver campaign news and inspirational stories directly to rural users in a mobile-first format. SMS and outbound dialers (OBDs) were utilized to reach low-internet zones, providing essential campaign updates and nomination reminders. These tech-enabled solutions not only addressed the challenges of the digital divide and media fragmentation but also established a scalable model for future rural activations. Results? Out of 11,340 targeted Sarpanches, 8,900 valid entries were received, resulting in a 70% engagement rate. This high engagement highlighted the deep penetration and relevance of the campaign. However, Dang believes that the human impact of the campaign was far more effective for the brand. He also thinks that's because the brand is consciously looking at consumers as people first. 'We are very passionate about the people that we serve. We don't aggressively advertise on digital but we use the medium to create valuable content for people who are looking to understand the category,' he adds. A brand for new India With India putting its energies into building strong infrastructure, brands like UltraTech are moving in that direction too. UltraTech wants to position itself as a nation-builder. That's why and how the brand built the campaign, "Banega Toh Badhega India" (If it's built, India will progress). The campaign highlighted that the impact of infrastructure on human lives is more important than its grandeur. To drive this conversation, the brand collaborated with influencers who are voices shaping contemporary culture. From mega-superstar Shahrukh Khan to influencers like Karishma Mehta , Nikhil Sharma , Nilesh Misra, Saransh Goila, and Abhi & Niyu, among others, put together stories to amplify the campaign. A few other activities were also added to this strategy. Results? This piece reached over 500 million people across digital platforms ranging from podcasts, news, and creators. It engaged with 18 million-plus CTV affluent audiences with a VTR of 95%. The perception of UltraTech as a nation-builder increased 2X from 8% to 16% among the general audience and 3X among campaign viewers. Dang is of the opinion that working on disruptive campaigns like these almost makes him feel like Sherlock Holmes. He signs with this note, 'There are enough clues out there which stare at you (insights) which help you to make smart decisions (strategies).' The brand will focus on continuing to create high-impact campaigns and explore newer subcategories to stay ahead of the curve. (UltraTech was the 'Disruptive Brand of the Year' at ET Brand Equity's Brand Disruption Awards 2025.)
Hindustan Times
03-06-2025
- Politics
- Hindustan Times
Himachal: Sukhu launches scheme to increase state's green cover
Chief minister (CM) Sukhvinder Singh Sukhu on Monday launched the 'Rajiv Gandhi Van Samvardhan Yojana' from Hamirpur, which aims to increase the green cover in the state. Terming it as a significant step towards environmental conservation and community participation in forest management, Sukhu said that the scheme not only aims to increase the green cover by planting fruit-bearing trees on barren and degraded forest areas but will also generate employment and income for local communities by ensuring participation of mahila and yuvak mandals besides self-help groups. The CM handed over certificates in this respect to two Mahila Mandals from Nadaun, viz: Amlehad and Bhawdan, which will carry out the plantation activities on two hectares of forest land and ensure its maintenance for a period of five years. The CM also launched the 'Green Adoption Scheme'. In the initial phase, Ambuja Company would undertake plantation work on 25 hectares, while the Adani Foundation and UltraTech would adopt 10 hectares each. He handed over certificates to these organisations as a mark of official recognition. During the event, Sukhu also inspected the passing-out parade of the newly appointed van mitras and interacted with them. He said that the forest department had been facing a shortage of field staff, which posed challenges to forest protection. To address this, appointments of van mitras have been made based on merit, with many young women taking the lead in securing these roles. CM Sukhu assured them that the government was committed to framing future policies that safeguard their careers and recognise them as true guardians of the forests. 'The state government was focusing on women empowerment and the reservation for women in police recruitment has been increased to 30 percent and in Lahaul-Spiti, all key administrative officers, including the Deputy Commissioner were women with decision-making authority,' he said.
