Can Milky Mist IPO deliver long-term growth for high-risk investors?

ET Intelligence Group: Milky Mist Dairy Food, a dairy products maker, plans to raise ₹1,428 crore through a fresh issue for capital expenditure and repay debt. It will also raise ₹125 crore through an offer for sale. The promoter group’s stake will fall to 79.5% after the IPO from 93%. The company manufactures products such as cheese, paneer, butter, curd, ghee, yogurt and ice cream. Nearly 70% of the revenue comes from South India, signalling geographic concentration. The company is a market leader across some of the dairy categories such as organised packaged paneer in India, packaged cheese in South India and has 35-40% of the organised Greek yogurt market by value in FY26. Given these factors, risk-tolerant investors may consider the IPO with a long-term horizon.

Business

Incorporated in 1999, Milky Mist manufactures dairy products and also frozen foods, ready-to-eat, ready-to-cook foods, and chocolates under its flagship brand ‘Milky Mist’ and sub-brands such as SmartChef, Capella, Misty Lite, Briyas, and Asal. It has one manufacturing facility and 29 milk chilling centres. According to Lattice, the company is the largest private packaged paneer brand in India’s organised market, with a 19% value market share in FY26. It is also the largest private packaged cheese brand in South India, commanding a 12% value market share, and ranks third nationally among private players with a 5% share. Offline channels accounted for 86% of FY26 revenue, while online sales contributed 13.7%.

Read more: Q1 Earnings Scorecard: Strong demand drives revenue, input costs hit profits

Financials

Revenue from operations jumped 31.3% annually to ₹3,138.4 crore and net profit grew 155.6% annually to ₹127 crore between FY24 and FY26. Operating margin before depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA margin) expanded to 13.9% in FY26 from 12.2% in FY24. In FY26, revenue grew 33.6% while net profit surged 175.7% year-on-year.The company operates at a higher margin compared with 8-12% for peers. Realisation per litre of milk grew to ₹77.8 in FY26 from ₹65.9 in FY24. Total debt rose to ₹1,671.9 crore in FY26 from ₹1,036.7 crore in FY24. Debt-equity ratio was 3.6 times in FY26 as against 4.20 times in FY25 and 3.7 times in FY24.

Valuation

Considering post-IPO equity and FY26 net profit, the company is valued at a price-to-earnings (P/E) multiple of up to 85. It does not have any direct like-for-like listed peers; however, the closest dairy-focused companies, such as Parag Milk Foods, Dodla Dairy, and Hatsun Agro Product, trade at P/E multiples of around 20-60. In comparison, packaged food companies such as Bikaji Foods International, Tata Consumer Products, and Nestle India trade at P/E multiples of 62-84. The premium valuation reflects the company’s higher margins, value-added product portfolio and leadership position in some categories such as paneer, cheese and Greek yogurt.