Asian Paints shares faced heavy selling pressure on Wednesday, January 28, plunging as much as 6.6% in early trade to ₹2,451, making it the worst performer on the Nifty 50. The sharp decline followed the company’s December-quarter results, where lower profits and cautious commentary on demand weighed on investor sentiment. The stock had already lost around 3% in the previous session, bringing the two-day cumulative drop to 9.3%. Asian Paints is now trading nearly 18% below its 52-week high of ₹2,985.50 hit in December 2025, though it remains 10% higher over the past year. Over the past month, however, the stock has declined 10%.
For Q3FY26, the company reported a 4.83% year-on-year decline in consolidated net profit to ₹1,073.92 crore, largely due to exceptional items, including costs related to the new labour code and an impairment loss on a subsidiary. Revenue grew 3.71% to ₹8,867.02 crore. Profit before exceptional items and tax rose 8.46% to ₹1,646.70 crore, while total expenses increased 3.12% to ₹7,447.07 crore.
Motilal Oswal maintained a neutral stance with a target of ₹2,950, highlighting soft demand and intense competition. It expects a 10% revenue CAGR over FY26–28 and EBITDA margins around 19% in FY27–28. HDFC Securities noted robust industrial segment performance, steady overseas growth, and improved gross and EBITDA margins, aided by cost efficiencies and lower raw material prices.
