Dachepalli Publishers Limited H1 sales rise to Rs 70.01 crore

Dachepalli Publishers Limited reported Rs 70.01 crore of revenue from operations for the half year ended September 30, 2026, against Rs 40.36 crore a year earlier. Profit for the period was Rs 9.71 crore, up from Rs 7.55 crore, as raw-material consumption increased to Rs 48.00 crore alongside higher product sales.

How did Dachepalli Publishers perform in H1?

Dachepalli Publishers reported revenue from operations of Rs 70.01 crore for the half year ended September 30, 2026, up Rs 29.65 crore from Rs 40.36 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2025. Revenue consisted entirely of sales of products net of trade discounts. The company identifies printing and publishing of books as its single business segment and operates in a single geographical area.

Profit for the September 2026 half year was Rs 9.71 crore, compared with Rs 7.55 crore in the corresponding prior-year period, an increase of Rs 2.16 crore. Basic and diluted earnings per share, or EPS, were Rs 6.48, against Rs 6.86 a year earlier. The weighted average number of equity shares rose to 149.76 lakh from 110.16 lakh, affecting the per-share comparison.

Dachepalli Publishers also recorded higher sales than in the immediately preceding half year ended March 31, 2026, when revenue was Rs 51.00 crore. September-half profit was Rs 2.07 crore above the Rs 7.65 crore recorded in that period. The outstanding equity share count was 149.76 lakh at both March 31, 2026 and September 30, 2026.

What costs moved with Dachepalli Publishers' sales growth?

Dachepalli Publishers reported raw-material consumption of Rs 48.00 crore for the September 2026 half year, up Rs 22.99 crore from Rs 25.01 crore a year earlier. Purchases were Rs 47.74 crore, while closing raw-material stock was Rs 20.63 crore, compared with opening stock of Rs 20.89 crore. The increase in material consumption was lower than the Rs 29.65 crore rise in revenue.

The company reported a Rs 41.95 lakh decrease in inventories of finished goods and work-in-progress, compared with a Rs 4.39 crore increase in the September 2025 half year. Closing finished-goods stock was Rs 25.43 crore and closing work-in-progress was Rs 7.78 crore. Those balances were below respective opening levels of Rs 25.75 crore and Rs 7.88 crore.

Employee-benefit expense fell to Rs 4.27 crore from Rs 5.67 crore in the year-earlier half year. Salaries, wages and bonus declined to Rs 3.74 crore from Rs 5.16 crore, while gratuity expense was Rs 19.01 lakh, compared with nil a year earlier. The company said its gratuity obligation was calculated by an independent actuary for 212 employees and that the plan was unfunded.

Which operating expenses changed at Dachepalli Publishers?

Dachepalli Publishers' other expenses were Rs 2.74 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 2.37 crore in the corresponding 2025 period. Business promotion, advertising and sales-meeting costs rose to Rs 17.55 lakh from Rs 4.74 lakh. Travelling, conveyance and vehicle-running expenses increased to Rs 48.29 lakh from Rs 21.52 lakh.

Managerial remuneration was Rs 50.10 lakh, compared with Rs 46.50 lakh a year earlier. Carriage outwards, freight, courier and forwarding rose to Rs 31.21 lakh from Rs 17.13 lakh, while power, fuel and water charges were Rs 27.81 lakh against Rs 28.37 lakh. Repairs and maintenance of plant and machinery was Rs 27.70 lakh, compared with Rs 19.28 lakh.

Dachepalli Publishers said expenses recorded in its unit expense ledgers were analysed voucher by voucher and presented under natural expense heads. It regrouped comparative figures that had previously been reported under a single unit-expenses line. Consequently, comparisons between individual expense categories use the regrouped presentation disclosed in the results.

What changed in Dachepalli Publishers' borrowings and liquidity?

Dachepalli Publishers' finance costs were Rs 79.16 lakh for the September 2026 half year, down from Rs 82.65 lakh a year earlier. Interest on term loans, including processing fees, was Rs 72.69 lakh. Other borrowing costs of Rs 4.14 lakh included prepayment or foreclosure charges and interest on statutory dues.

On April 30, 2026, Dachepalli Publishers availed a Rs 12 crore loan against property from HDFC Bank, of which Rs 3.95 crore was applied to take over an existing HDFC Term Loan-1. A further Rs 6 crore loan against property was disbursed on July 10, 2026. The company foreclosed its Protium Finance Limited term loan on August 12, 2026, and included Rs 4.38 lakh of foreclosure charges in finance costs.

Cash and bank balances were Rs 87.99 lakh at September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 66.63 lakh at March 31, 2026. Trade receivables declined to Rs 74.52 crore from Rs 87.55 crore over those dates. Advances to suppliers and others increased to Rs 21.95 crore from Rs 7.73 crore, while balances with statutory authorities decreased to Rs 8.48 lakh from Rs 1.61 crore.

What related-party activity did Dachepalli Publishers disclose?

Dachepalli Publishers disclosed Rs 3.56 crore of sales to Pelican Publishing House and Rs 8.76 crore to School Book Company during the half year ended September 30, 2026. Both were classified as entities under common control. Their trade receivable balances at September 30 were Rs 71.43 lakh and Rs 10.89 crore, respectively.

Total director remuneration was Rs 50.10 lakh for the September 2026 half year. The company also disclosed unsecured long-term borrowings from key management personnel and their relatives, including Rs 4.30 crore from D. Vinod Kumar and Rs 3.29 crore from D. Abhinav at September 30, 2026.

The Audit Committee reviewed and the Board approved Dachepalli Publishers' unaudited standalone results on October 24, 2026. The statutory auditors carried out a limited review. The company said no interim dividend was declared or paid for the half year ended September 30, 2026.

Conclusion

Dachepalli Publishers combined a Rs 29.65 crore year-on-year increase in half-year revenue with a Rs 2.16 crore increase in profit. Material consumption rose by Rs 22.99 crore, while employee-benefit expense declined by Rs 1.40 crore and finance costs decreased by Rs 3.49 lakh. The results also show lower trade receivables and higher advances to suppliers and others at September 30, 2026.

The next full-year results will indicate how the company's income-tax charge compares with its disclosed estimated weighted average annual tax rate of 25.17%. They will also show the effect on borrowings and finance costs of the Rs 18 crore of loan-against-property disbursements in April and July 2026 and the Protium loan foreclosure completed in August 2026.