| Company | Core Business Focus | Segment Breakdown |
|---|---|---|
| Excel Industries | Specialty chemicals, agrochemicals, environmental solutions | Agrochemicals (~60%), Industrial Chemicals (~25%), Others |
| Sumitomo Chemical India | Crop protection, specialty chemicals, public health products | Agrochem (~80%), Public Health, Feed Additives |
| Dhanuka Agritech | Domestic-focused agrochemical formulations | Insecticides (~45%), Herbicides (~30%), Fungicides (~20%) |
| Sharda Cropchem | Agrochemical exports, formulation + technical trading | Crop Protection (~90%), Conveyor Belts, Others |
| Financial Metric (₹ Cr) | Excel Industries | Sumitomo Chemical India | Dhanuka Agritech | Sharda Cropchem |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (FY23) | ~1,600 | ~3,800 | ~1,550 | ~3,100 |
| EBITDA Margin (%) | ~12% | ~20% | ~17% | ~11% |
| Net Profit (FY23) | ~120 | ~530 | ~200 | ~160 |
| Net Profit Margin (%) | ~7.5% | ~14% | ~13% | ~5% |
| EPS (₹) | ~10 | ~10.5 | ~16 | ~18 |
| ROE (%) | ~10% | ~23% | ~16% | ~13% |
| Market Cap (Apr 2024) | ~₹1,500 Cr | ~₹22,000 Cr | ~₹3,000 Cr | ~₹2,800 Cr |
| Debt-to-Equity | <0.2 | 0.05 | 0.10 | 0.15 |
📝 Source: Annual Reports FY23, company filings, and public disclosures up to Q3FY24.
One of India’s older agrochemical firms (est. 1941), it has a diversified approach with a strong focus on environmental solutions.
Offers niche intermediates and biopesticides.
Domestic heavy, but with low scale compared to others.
A subsidiary of Japan’s Sumitomo Chemical Co., giving it R&D depth and a strong product pipeline.
Focused on patented/formulation-based crop protection.
Fast growth due to aggressive expansion in Tier-2 and rural markets; imports tech from parent.
Strong domestic network with over 8,000 distributors.
Imports technicals from global firms and focuses on formulation.
Low CapEx model, high asset turnover.
Strong export orientation (~80 countries), asset-light trading model.
Operates in regulated markets (Europe, LatAm), licenses and registers products.
Low manufacturing footprint but high regulatory expense.
| Company | Strategy Highlights |
|---|---|
| Excel | Expanding specialty and green chem portfolio; niche markets focus; increasing R&D spend |
| Sumitomo | Leveraging parent R&D, launching 3-4 new molecules annually; focusing on rural India and increasing backward integration |
| Dhanuka | Adding backward integration via a new technical plant in Dahej; digital marketing and dealer network digitization |
| Sharda | Expanding EU registrations; investing in brand building and regulatory IP; increasing formulation share |
| Company | Strengths | Weaknesses |
|---|---|---|
| Excel | Long history, niche eco-friendly products | Small scale, lower margins |
| Sumitomo | Strong parentage, product innovation, high-margin portfolio | High import dependency from Japan |
| Dhanuka | Wide distribution, lean operations | Limited export presence, margin pressure from raw material inflation |
| Sharda | Asset-light, global footprint, IP-based moat | Regulatory risks, FX volatility, low control over manufacturing |
| Company | Promoter Holding | Key Institutional Investors |
|---|---|---|
| Excel | ~51% | LIC, HDFC Mutual Fund |
| Sumitomo | ~75% (Sumitomo Chemical Co., Japan) | Domestic MFs, FPIs |
| Dhanuka | ~75% | SBI MF, DSP, Smallcap World Fund |
| Sharda | ~74% | Axis MF, ICICI Prudential, DSP MF |
| Company | Key Customer Base | Geographic Reach |
|---|---|---|
| Excel | Indian farmers, industrial clients | Mostly India |
| Sumitomo | Rural India, semi-urban growers, urban pest control | Pan-India |
| Dhanuka | Domestic farmers via distribution | Entire India |
| Sharda | Distributors and large agrochemical buyers in EU, LatAm | 80+ countries |
| Metric | Excel | Sumitomo | Dhanuka | Sharda |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| P/E (TTM) | ~12x | ~42x | ~14x | ~11x |
| P/B | ~1.3x | ~6.2x | ~2.1x | ~1.7x |
| EV/EBITDA | ~7.5x | ~28x | ~9x | ~7x |
Sumitomo Chemical India is the largest and fastest-growing of the four, backed by R&D-rich Japanese parentage, high margins, and premium valuation.
Dhanuka Agritech is an efficient domestic player with good profitability, but relatively low export exposure and R&D.
Sharda Cropchem’s strength lies in its global asset-light model, but it remains vulnerable to FX, raw material, and regulatory pressures.
Excel Industries remains a niche and value player with interesting diversification but limited growth scale.
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