1. 🌟 At a Glance

Ajanta Soya is a smallcap edible oil company that manufactures vanaspati and specialty fats for the food industry. Despite a boring brand presence, the stock packs occasional punch with 100%+ rallies. Low debt, decent ROCE, and an improving margin profile make it a sleeper in the FMCG-agri segment. But is it refined enough for serious investors?

2. ✨ Introduction with Hook

What do puffs, pastries, and penny stocks have in common? Ajanta Soya.
This little-known edible oil processor has had more comebacks than a 90s Bollywood villain. After disappearing into penny-stock obscurity, it resurfaced with rising profits, cleaner books, and a credit rating upgrade.

Is this mini Marico or just Patanjali’s side hustle gone rogue?

3. 🔬 Business Model (WTF Do They Even Do?)

• Core products: Vanaspati oil, refined edible oil, specialty fats
• Applications: Bakery, confectionery, processed foods (biscuits, puffs, pastries)
• Clients: Food manufacturers & bulk food service businesses
• Sales model: B2B with limited branding (no major retail push)
• Plant location: Bhiwadi, Rajasthan
• Capacity: Moderate, scalable with brownfield capex

4. 📈 Financials Overview — Profit, Margins, ROE, Growth

FY20 to FY25 Snapshot:

• Revenue CAGR: ~10% (slow and unsteady)
• PAT CAGR: ~23% (thanks to operating leverage and cost control)
• FY25 PAT: ₹27 Cr
• FY25 Revenue: ₹1,330 Cr (up from ₹1,022 Cr in FY24)
• ROCE: 28% — surprisingly spicy
• ROE: 18.8% (good for commodity biz)

Margins are volatile but improving. Don’t expect Marico-level stability.

5. 💲 Valuation — Is It Cheap, Meh, or Crack?

• CMP: ₹38.3 | P/E: 11.4x
• Market Cap: ₹308 Cr
• Book Value: ₹19.7 | P/B: 1.9x
• EV/EBITDA: ~7.5x (low end of FMCG)

Fair Value Range:

• Base case: 10x FY25 EPS of ₹3.4 = ₹34
• Bull case: 15x EPS = ₹51
• FV Range: ₹34 – ₹51

Current price is within reasonable zone, but upside depends on consistent profitability.

6. 🌟 What’s Cooking — News, Triggers, Drama

• Jul 2024: CRISIL upgrades credit to BBB-/Stable
• FY25 Q4: PAT of ₹5 Cr, QoQ dip but YoY growth
• Management rejig: Arun Tyagi joins as WTD in Jan 2024
• Margins trending up over 5 quarters
• No dividend despite profitability = cash conservation or frugality?
• Rumours: Possible private label B2C venture in H2FY26

7. 💳 Balance Sheet — How Much Debt, How Many Dreams?

• Total Debt: Zero — debt-free status intact
• Reserves: ₹143 Cr (steady rise)
• Equity: ₹32 Cr
• Contingent liabilities: Not material
• Investments: ₹37 Cr (mostly financial instruments)

Solid, clean, and low-risk for its size.

8. 💵 Cash Flow — Sab Number Game Hai

• FY25 CFO: ₹16 Cr
• FCF: Positive — no aggressive capex
• CFI: -₹14 Cr — some asset addition
• CFF: -₹3 Cr — stable outflows
• Dividends: ZERO — hoarder vibes?

No cash burn. But no cash shower either.

9. 🔢 Ratios — Sexy or Stressy?

• ROCE: 27.5% — excellent
• ROE: 18.8%
• OPM: Hovering ~3% — thin but improving
• Working Capital Days: 21 — tight and tidy
• CCC: 14 days (surprisingly efficient)
• Inventory Days: 30 | Debtors: 10 | Payables: 25

This is Oily Efficiency 101.

10. 📊 P&L Breakdown — Show Me the Money

• FY25 Sales: ₹1,330 Cr
• EBITDA: ~₹34 Cr (est.)
• EBITDA Margin: 2.6%
• PAT: ₹27 Cr
• EPS: ₹3.37

The margins are low, but the absolute earnings for a sub-₹400 Cr market cap are decent.

11. 🏋️ Peer Comparison — Who Else in the Game?

Among microcaps, Ajanta beats peers in ROCE, stays clean on debt, but lacks scale.

12. 👤 Miscellaneous — Shareholding, Promoters

• Promoter Holding: 47.7% (stable)
• DII: 0.24% (new entry)
• Public: 52%
• No pledging
• No FII involvement yet
• Shareholder count: ~41,000 — rising retail interest

13. 🧱 EduInvesting Verdict™

Ajanta Soya is not your typical FMCG brand, but it is also not your typical penny stock.

• Debt-free? Yes.
• Profitable? Yes.
• Margin-challenged? Yes.
• Scalable? Debatable.

If edible oil was a cricket team, Ajanta Soya would be the disciplined No. 6 batsman — doesn’t hit centuries, but sticks around.

It’s not for momentum maniacs, but it might work for value diggers who love oily margins.

FV Range: ₹34 – ₹51

Tags: Ajanta Soya, Edible Oil Stocks, Vanaspati, Smallcap FMCG, Debt-Free Stocks, Rajasthan Manufacturing, EduInvesting 13-point Format, CRISIL Rating Upgrade

✍️ Written by Prashant | 🗓️ July 8, 2025