Cera Sanitaryware Limited

Industrials — Building Products & Equipment · NSE

₹5,085.50+₹39.50 (+0.78%)

DalalBaazaar Score

52 / 100

🟡 Moderate

Verdict

NEUTRAL

Risk

High

Driven by high debt relative to equity, small-cap size, which brings sharper price swings, falling profits.

In simple words: Strong business and financial position, though profits are falling even as sales grow. Debt is the main factor to watch.

Decision support, not a buy or sell call.

As of 18 Oct 2026, 6:09 pm

Mixed / neutral. No major red flags jump out, but nothing here screams "obviously cheap" either. This is a name that needs a peer comparison and a view on near-term earnings triggers before sizing a position.

Understanding the Business

Company site ↗

The 60-second version of Cera Sanitaryware Limited — what it does, how it earns, and who it competes with, before any of the numbers below.

What does this company do?

Cera Sanitaryware Limited manufactures, sells, and trades in building material products in India.

IndustryBuilding Products & Equipment

SectorIndustrials

Employees2,502

Annual revenue₹2,033 Cr

How does it make money?

Turns over ₹2,033 Cr a year. Of every ₹100 of sales, about ₹10 reaches shareholders as profit, with ₹13 left at the operating level before interest, tax and depreciation. Each of its 2,502 employees supports ₹81.2 lakh of revenue a year, the signature of a people-led business.

EBITDA margin13.5%

Net margin10.0%

Revenue / employee₹81.2 lakh

Who are its competitors?

The closest listed comparisons in its industry are LARSEN & TOUBRO LTD., SIEMENS LTD, ABB INDIA LIMITED. These are the companies its valuation and returns are measured against elsewhere in this report.

LARSEN & TOUBRO LTD.P/E 30.1x · ROE 15.2%

SIEMENS LTDP/E 88.8x · ROE 10.5%

ABB INDIA LIMITEDP/E 92.6x · ROE 19.1%

What is its competitive advantage?Some evidence

ROCE of 17.3% is above what capital typically costs, which suggests some pricing power, though not yet the sustained, wide gap that marks a durable advantage.

ROCE17.3%

ROE13.9%

Peer median ROE15.2%

What is the outlook?

14 analysts covering the stock expect revenue to grow about 12.7% and earnings to grow about 20.6% in the year to 2028. These are estimates by people who follow the company, not a forecast for the wider industry.

Est. revenue growth+12.7%

Est. earnings growth+20.6%

Analysts14

What has been driving growth?

Sales and margins have both contributed to where profit is now. Over 3 years revenue moved +13% while net margin moved -14% relative to itself. What this cannot tell you is which products, customers or geographies did the work — that lives in the segment disclosures of the annual report.

Revenue effect+13%

Margin effect-14%

DalalBaazaar Score

52/ 100

Moderate

Weighted across six categories. Every point is explained below.

✗ Revenue CAGR of only 4.1% — barely ahead of inflation
✗ Profit has declined at 0.8% a year
✗ Profit fell 2.7% in the latest year

Quality vs. Valuation

Company Quality

50/ 100

Average

How good the business is, ignoring the share price entirely.

Valuation

62/ 100

Fair

What you are being asked to pay, ignoring how good the business is.

A reasonable business at a reasonable price — neither the quality nor the valuation stands out in either direction.

Historical Valuation

Current P/E

32.3x

3Y Median

36.2x

40 monthly readings · mean 38.5x · range 24.0x–59.0x

Sector Median

88.8x

median of 3 sector peers

🟢Current valuation is approximately 11% below its 3y median of 36.2x. Cheaper than its own history, which is worth a reason too: the market may be pricing in something the backward-looking numbers do not show.

🟢Against its sector it trades 64% below the peer median of 88.8x.

vs. its own history

Fair

36.2x median over 40 months · -11%

vs. sector peers

Cheap

88.8x median of 3 peers · -64%

vs. generic bands

Fair

15x–35x

P/E (Trailing)

32.3x

P/B

4.45x

EV/EBITDA

24.0x

PEG

—

Dividend Yield

1.47%

What's Good / What's Bad

🟢 What's Going Well3

Debt is being paid down
Total debt is down 12% over 3 years.
Cash generation is improving
Free cash flow is up 55% over 3 years.
Consistently profitable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years.

🔴 What Needs Attention4

Margins are compressing
EBITDA margin has slipped from 17.2% to 13.5% over 3 years.
Return on equity is falling
ROE has dropped from 17.9% to 13.9% — each rupee of shareholder capital earns less than it did.
Return on capital is falling
ROCE has declined from 22.6% to 17.3% — often a sign of competition or overexpansion.
Receivables growing faster than sales
Receivables are up 45% against revenue growth of 13% — customers are taking longer to pay.

Red Flags

3 items require attention · 1 high · 2 watch

🔴High leverageFinancial
Debt/Equity of 3.17x — earnings must service borrowings before shareholders see anything.
🟡Margins are compressingFinancial
EBITDA margin is down 3.7 points over 3 years.
🟡Receivables growing faster than salesFinancial
Receivables up 45% against revenue up 13% — sales are being booked faster than they are collected.

Investment Thesis

🟢 Bull CaseWhat could make this work?

Cheaper than its peers
It trades 64% below the sector median. Either the market sees a problem the numbers do not show, or the discount closes.
Earnings have proved durable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years. Consistency lowers the risk that any single bad year is structural rather than cyclical.

🔴 Bear CaseWhat could go wrong?

Margins are being competed away
EBITDA margin has fallen from 17.2% to 13.5%. If the trend continues, profit falls even on flat sales — and margin decline rarely reverses quickly.
Leverage amplifies any setback
Debt/Equity of 3.17x. Interest is payable whether or not the business has a good year.
Sales are being booked faster than collected
Receivables are up 45% against revenue up 13%. If customers keep taking longer to pay, reported profit will not turn into cash — and write-offs follow if some never do.
Growth barely outpaces inflation
Revenue compounding at 4.1% a year is close to the rate prices rise, so the business is gaining little ground in real terms. That leaves the share price dependent on a re-rating rather than on earnings growth.
Returns on shareholder capital are falling
ROE has dropped from 17.9% to 13.9%. Each rupee of equity earns less than it did, so profit growth increasingly depends on raising more capital rather than on the existing base working harder.

🟡 Key Things to WatchMeasurable tripwires, set against where this company stands today

1EBITDA margin holds above 11%✓ 13.5%
Two points below today's level — enough room for noise, tight enough to catch real compression.
2Revenue growth stays above 4% a year✓ 4.1% CAGR
Latest reported year was 15.1%. The bar is set below the established compounding rate, so ordinary variation does not trip it.
3Free cash flow remains positive✓ ₹191 Cr
Profit that never becomes cash eventually stops being profit.
4Debt / EBITDA stays below 2x✓ 0.2x
The ratio lenders write covenants against; it survives a small or negative equity base, unlike Debt/Equity.
5ROCE stays above 14%✓ 17.3%
Falling returns on capital are usually competition arriving, and show up here before they reach the margin.

Investment Checklist

7 / 12 checks passed

✗ Strong return on equity (ROE ≥ 15%)
✓ Strong return on capital employed (ROCE ≥ 15%)
✗ Healthy net margin (≥ 10%)
✓ Generates positive free cash flow
✗ Manageable leverage (Debt/Equity < 1.0)
✓ Adequate short-term liquidity (Current Ratio ≥ 1.0)
✓ Revenue growing year-over-year
✗ Profit growing year-over-year
✓ Not trading at an extreme valuation (P/E < 40x)
✓ Not buying right at the 52-week high
✓ Analyst consensus isn't majority-sell
✗ Short-term technical trend isn't bearish

Price history

Quick Metrics

4 good · 5 neutral · 2 weak

Market Cap

₹6,558 Cr

Small Cap

Smaller company — thin liquidity and deep drawdowns are normal here

P/E (Trailing)

32.3x

Fair

Fairly valued against the generic band

P/B Ratio

4.45x

Fair

Moderate premium to the company's book value

EPS (TTM)

₹157.36

Profitable

Profitable on a per-share basis

ROE

13.9%

Moderate

Moderate capital efficiency

ROCE

17.3%

Strong

Earns comfortably above its likely cost of capital

Debt/Equity

3.17x

High

High leverage

Revenue Growth (YoY)

15.1%

Healthy

Healthy top-line growth

Profit Growth (YoY)

-2.7%

Falling

Profits are shrinking

Dividend Yield

1.47%

Modest

Small cash return — most of the return has to come from the price

Free Cash Flow

₹191 Cr

Cash generative

Generates cash even after funding its capex

More Metrics

CMP

₹5,085.5

P/E (Forward)

21.7x

Improving

Below the trailing multiple — the street expects earnings to grow into the price

Operating Margin

8.2%

Average

Average margins

Net Margin

9.5%

Average

Average bottom-line conversion

Current Ratio

4.26

Comfortable

Healthy short-term liquidity

Beta (vs Nifty)

-0.06

Defensive

Steadier than the market

52W Range Position

27%

Mid-range

Technical Snapshot

SMA 20 / SMA 50

5199.0 / 5550.1

Bearish alignment (short < long)

Price vs SMA 200

Below

Long-term downtrend

RSI (14)

31.9

Neutral momentum

Financial Trend (4-Year)

Metric	FY23	FY24	FY25	FY26	3Y CAGR
Revenue	₹1,800 Cr	₹1,866 Cr	₹1,876 Cr	₹2,033 Cr	+4.1%
EBITDA	₹309 Cr	₹325 Cr	₹300 Cr	₹274 Cr	-3.9%
EBITDA Margin	17.2%	17.4%	16.0%	13.5%	—
PAT (Net Profit)	₹209 Cr	₹239 Cr	₹246 Cr	₹204 Cr	-0.8%
EPS	₹161.01	₹183.76	₹190.4	₹158.31	-0.6%
ROE	17.9%	17.8%	18.3%	13.9%	—
ROCE	22.6%	22.1%	21.3%	17.3%	—
Total Debt	₹53 Cr	₹44 Cr	₹63 Cr	₹47 Cr	-4.2%
Free Cash Flow	₹123 Cr	₹171 Cr	₹88 Cr	₹191 Cr	+15.7%

🟢 Revenue has grown at 4.1% a year over 3 years.

🔴 EBITDA has shrunk at 3.9% a year over 3 years.

🔴 EBITDA Margin has fallen from 17.2% to 13.5% over 3 years (-3.7 pts).

🟡 PAT (Net Profit) has been broadly flat over 3 years (-0.8% a year).

🟡 EPS has been broadly flat over 3 years (-0.6% a year).

🔴 ROE has fallen from 17.9% to 13.9% over 3 years (-4.0 pts).

🔴 ROCE has fallen from 22.6% to 17.3% over 3 years (-5.4 pts).

🟢 Total Debt has shrunk at 4.2% a year over 3 years.

🟢 Free Cash Flow has grown at 15.7% a year over 3 years.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow — FY2026

Total Assets

₹1,958 Cr

Total Liabilities

₹486 Cr

Total Debt

₹47 Cr

Cash & Equivalents

₹11 Cr

Operating Cash Flow

₹212 Cr

Capex

-₹21 Cr

Shareholding (proxy)

Institutional Holding

26.3%

Insider Holding

57.0%

Corporate Actions

Dividend Rate

₹75

Ex-Dividend Date

07 Jul 2026

Analyst Consensus

Recommendations

15 Buy · 2 Hold · 1 Sell

Target Price (Mean)

₹6,985.17

+37.4% vs CMP

Target Range

₹5,650 – ₹8,012

Peer Comparison

Company	P/E	ROE
LARSEN & TOUBRO LTD.	30.1x	15.2%
SIEMENS LTD	88.8x	10.5%
ABB INDIA LIMITED	92.6x	19.1%

Recent News

1 positive2 mixed3 general

Cera Sanitaryware Share Price - Live NSE: CERA Stock Price & Chart

Upstox, 16 Oct

CERA Forecast — Price Target — Prediction for 2027

TradingView, 26 JunAnalyst view

🟡Mixed / dependsBroker commentary — an opinion about the price rather than new information about the business.

Can Cera Sanitaryware’s growth recovery continue?

Livemint, 16 Jun

Why Is Cera Sanitaryware Share Price Falling Key Reasons 2026

Univest, 03 JunPrice move

🟡Mixed / dependsA price move rather than a change in the business. If the figures on this page have not moved, the fall is either an opportunity or news they have yet to catch up with.

Cera Sanitaryware Limited (NSE:CERA) Looks Like A Good Stock, And It's Going Ex-Dividend Soon

Simply Wall Street, 03 JulCapital return

🟢Potentially positiveCash or shares returned to holders. A buyback is only good value if the shares were cheap when bought.

Cera Sanitaryware (CERA.NS) Slips 1.38% to ₹5124.5, Holding Above Key Support - McClellan Oscillator

siam.in, 29 Sept

Watch Items

Cross-check against the company's latest quarterly filing / investor presentation before acting.

DalalBaazaar Thesis

🟡Business QualityAdequate11.8/20

🟢Financial HealthStrong13.9/20

🔴GrowthWeak5/20

🟡ProfitabilityModerate7.1/15

🟡ValuationFair8.1/15

🟡RiskModerate5.7/10

Unremarkable in both directions

A reasonable business at a reasonable price. Nothing here is alarming and nothing is compelling, which usually means the decision rests on things this data cannot see — the industry's direction, management's intent, and what else is available to you. 1 high-severity red flag sits above this conclusion and should be read first.

This thesis breaks if

✓EBITDA margin holds above 11%13.5%
✓Revenue growth stays above 4% a year4.1% CAGR
✓Free cash flow remains positive₹191 Cr
✓Debt / EBITDA stays below 2x0.2x
✓ROCE stays above 14%17.3%