Chaman Lal Setia Exports Ltd Q2FY26 (Sep 2025) – From Maharani to Margin-Rani: ₹272 Cr Sales, ₹18.9 Cr Profit, and a Grainy Tale of Global Drama
1. At a Glance
Chaman Lal Setia Exports Ltd (CLSE) just dropped its Q2FY26 results, and let’s just say the Maharani brand had a royal quarter, albeit one that came after a storm of freight hikes, export restrictions, and global supply chain tantrums. For the quarter ended September 2025, the company clocked Revenue of ₹ 272.95 Cr (down 26.1% QoQ) and PAT of ₹ 18.93 Cr (down 29.1% QoQ). The margins, once fragrant like freshly cooked basmati, now smell faintly of freight fuel and regulation.
With a market cap of ₹ 1,352 Cr, the stock trades at ₹ 271, offering a P/E of 14.4x—a discount compared to peer KRBL’s 15.9x but still spicier than your neighbourhood thali. The ROE stands at 14.2%, and ROCE at 16.7%, proving that even amid global chaos, the Setias still know how to turn rice into rupees.
Oh, and they’ve almost wiped out debt (₹ 66.9 Cr vs ₹ 175 Cr in FY24). So yes—Basmati isn’t the only thing they’ve been de-leveraging.
2. Introduction – From Paddy to Profits (and Some Pain)
Chaman Lal Setia Exports Ltd isn’t a company. It’s practically a generational saga written in long-grain font. Incorporated in 1994 but exporting since 1982, this Amritsar-based Star Export House is one of India’s most respected (and roasted) rice brands—especially if your family WhatsApp group still forwards “Maharani Diabetic Rice” videos.
But FY25–26 hasn’t been a plain bowl of steamed rice. Between government price caps, freight costs tripling, and Red Sea trade disruptions, even seasoned exporters have been sweating like parboiled rice. CLSE managed to survive, even grow in its branded business (46% YoY growth in FY24 brands), while shipping to over 90 countries.
Still, the big irony? The same government that restricted non-basmati exports indirectly gave a royal push to CLSE’s basmati segment. It’s like being punished and rewarded at the same dinner table.
Despite global logistics chaos, the company remains India’s largest private label exporter—over 300+ private label brands, quietly sitting on your supermarket shelf under someone else’s logo.
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
Let’s decode this basmati empire.
CLSE doesn’t just mill rice—it processes, polishes, packages, and exports every possible variety of basmati under both its own brands (Maharani, Mithas, Begum) and countless private labels (because anonymity apparently pays well).
Their operations are asset-light by design. Roughly 70% of the rice they sell comes from semi-finished procurement—essentially outsourcing the heavy lifting and focusing on branding, sorting, and packaging. The remaining 30% is from direct paddy procurement, mainly during Oct–Nov.
Key plants:
Karnal (Haryana): Manufacturing, processing, and packaging—93% of sales.
Gandhidham (Gujarat): Processing & packaging—7% of sales.
Amritsar: Currently under renovation (because every good brand deserves a glow-up).
They even have warehouses of 80,000 MT and silos of 18,750 MT, proving that storage is their version of a fixed deposit.
Add to that some Desi Jugaad R&D—like “Neem as a bio-pesticide” and “Bhatti Sella through automation”—and you’ve got a mill that’s part factory, part science fair.
4. Financials Overview – Let’s Cook Some Numbers
Metric
Latest Qtr (Sep 2025)
YoY Qtr (Sep 2024)
Prev Qtr (Jun 2025)
YoY %
QoQ %
Revenue (₹ Cr)
273
369
307
-26.0%
-11.1%
EBITDA (₹ Cr)
24
36
29
-33.3%
-17.2%
PAT (₹ Cr)
18.9
27
22
-29.1%
-14.1%
EPS (₹)
3.81
5.37
4.35
-29.1%
-12.4%
Commentary: Margins got steamed like overcooked pulao. The quarter’s OPM at 9% (vs 12%+ in the glory days) signals stress from shipping costs and currency volatility. Annualized EPS is around ₹ 15.2, putting the implied P/E at 17.8x—still decent for a smallcap that’s survived more export bans than most have attended weddings.
5. Valuation Discussion – Fair Value Range
Method 1: P/E Approach Industry P/E = 19.3x Company P/E = 14.4x EPS (TTM) = ₹ 18.9
