1. At a Glance – The Paint Bucket Just Got Spilled
Akzo Nobel India Ltd is no longer just a polite European paint company quietly selling Dulux to Indian homes. FY26 has turned it into a full-blown corporate drama series. Market cap stands at ₹12,838 crore, stock price ₹2,819, down ~26% over 1 year, yet ROCE is flexing at 41.7% like it’s leg day every day. Dividend yield? A fat 3.55%, because when you’re unsure about growth, you bribe shareholders with cash.
Q3 FY26 wasn’t exactly Holi for revenues – sales fell 13.6% YoY, PAT down 12.9% YoY, but then boom 💥 – ₹18,463 million (₹1,846 crore) exceptional income landed in the P&L like a lottery ticket. Promoters exited, JSW Paints Limited walked in with 61.2% stake, boardroom chairs got rearranged, and suddenly Akzo Nobel India wants to be called JSW Dulux.
Is this a boring paint company anymore, or India’s most colourful corporate makeover? Let’s open the lid.
2. Introduction – From Dutch Discipline to Desi Drama
For decades, Akzo Nobel India Ltd was the quiet kid in the Indian paints classroom. Asian Paints shouted market share, Berger cracked jokes, Indigo tried to be cool, and Akzo sat in the corner polishing ROCE and paying dividends.
Incorporated in 1954, the company built a reputation for premium coatings, industrial discipline, and zero nonsense balance sheets. Growth was steady, boring, and respectable – like a Swiss bank account with a paintbrush.
Then came December 2025. The foreign promoter decided, “Bas, India ka ho gaya,” sold out, booked profits, and exited stage left. Enter JSW Group, India’s favourite “hum kuch bhi bana lenge” conglomerate. Steel? Cement? Energy? Now paints.
So FY26 is not
about paint volumes alone. It’s about control change, brand repositioning, governance reset, and whether JSW can turn a cash cow into a growth beast. Ready?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
At its core, Akzo Nobel India sells coatings. Sounds simple. It’s not.
Decorative Paints
This is your Dulux business – interior, exterior, waterproofing, warranties up to 15 years. This segment feeds off housing, renovations, and the Indian obsession with repainting before weddings.
Automotive & Specialty Coatings
Paints for cars, electronics, refinishes, and specialty applications. Less glamour, more margin stability. OEM relationships matter here.
Powder Coatings
Used in architecture, appliances, automotive, and industrial goods. Powder coatings are like gym food – not sexy, but essential.
Marine & Protective Coatings
Oil & gas, wind energy, infrastructure. Long project cycles, high technical barriers, sticky clients.
Industrial Coatings
Packaging, metal cans, appliances, construction materials. Basically, everything that shouldn’t rust, peel, or embarrass itself in public.
Manufacturing happens across Mohali, Thane, Gwalior, Bengaluru, Hyderabad, while 95% revenue is domestic. No export heroics here.
Simple summary? Akzo doesn’t chase volumes. It chases margin, ROCE, and sleep-at-night accounting.
4. Financials Overview –
