Bayer Crop Science Limited shareholders approved a final dividend of ₹60 per equity share of face value ₹10 each for the financial year ended March 31, 2026. The payout was confirmed during the company’s 68th Annual General Meeting (AGM) held on August 19, 2026, via video conferencing. This follows an interim dividend of ₹90 per share already paid during the year.

The meeting, chaired by Chairman Pankaj Patel, concluded with all proposed resolutions passing with the requisite majority. Shareholders also approved material related-party transactions with Bayer AG and ratified the remuneration for cost auditors M/s. D. C. Dave & Co.

Voting Participation and Results

The AGM was conducted through Video Conferencing / Other Audio-Visual Means (VC/OAVM). As on the record date of August 12, 2026, the company had 61,683 shareholders. Voting was conducted via remote e-voting (August 16–18, 2026) and e-voting during the AGM.

Promoter and Promoter Group holders, holding 32,102,999 shares, participated fully, casting votes equivalent to 100% of their holdings across all resolutions. Public institutional holders polled approximately 90.59% of their shares, while public non-institutional participation remained low at roughly 0.17%.

Note: For the related-party transaction resolution, promoter shares were excluded from voting as per regulatory requirements.

Key Resolutions Passed

The following ordinary and special business items were approved by the members:

• Adoption of audited financial statements for FY26 along with Board and Auditor reports.
• Confirmation of interim dividend payment of ₹90 per share and declaration of final dividend of ₹60 per share.
• Reappointment of Ms. Jana Marlen Ackermann (DIN: 10849470) as a Director, retiring by rotation.
• Approval of material related-party transactions with Bayer AG.
• Ratification of remuneration payable to cost auditors M/s. D. C. Dave & Co. for FY27.

Governance and Voting Process

Ms. Bharati Shetty, Company Secretary and Compliance Officer, facilitated the e-voting process, which included remote voting and voting during the meeting. Mr. Bhaskar Upadhyay of M/s. NL Bhatia & Associates served as the scrutinizer to ensure transparency. The combined results of remote and live e-voting were displayed on the company’s website and the BSE platform as per regulatory timelines.

Vice Chairman and Managing Director Simon-Thorsten Wiebusch and Executive Director and CFO Vinit Jindal addressed queries from pre-registered shareholders during the proceedings. The statutory and secretarial audit reports for FY26 were taken as read, containing no qualifications or adverse remarks.

Bayer CropScience Limited reported a net profit of ₹3,216 million for the quarter ended June 30, 2026, marking a 15.4% year-on-year increase from ₹2,787 million in Q1FY26. The profitability surge was primarily driven by an expansion in the EBITDA margin to 20.03% from 18.2% in the prior-year period, offsetting a 4.2% decline in revenue from operations to ₹18,350 million. This performance underscores the company’s ability to maintain earnings resilience through cost discipline and favorable product mix despite challenging market conditions.

The Board of Directors approved the unaudited financial results at a meeting held on August 5, 2026. The figures were subjected to limited review by statutory auditors Deloitte Haskins & Sells LLP. In compliance with Regulation 47 read with Schedule III Part A Para A of the SEBI (Listing Obligations and Disclosure Requirements) Regulations, 2015, the company published the newspaper advertisement for its unaudited financial results on August 7, 2026, in Financial Express, Loksatta, Free Press Journal, and Navshakti. Bharati Ratan Shetty, Company Secretary and Compliance Officer, certified the submission to BSE Limited.

Financial Highlights

The following table summarises key financial metrics for the quarter alongside prior-year and full-year comparisons:

Total income remained relatively stable at ₹19,239 million compared to ₹19,333 million in Q1FY26. Other income rose sharply to ₹889 million from ₹187 million in the previous year’s quarter, largely due to a one-time gain of ₹639 million on the divestment of marketing rights for formulated products. Cost of materials consumed increased slightly to ₹10,427 million from ₹10,395 million, while employee benefits expense rose to ₹1,128 million from ₹1,043 million. Depreciation and amortisation expense increased significantly to ₹501 million from ₹272 million.

Management Commentary

Simon Wiebusch, Vice Chairman & Managing Director and CEO, Bayer CropScience Limited, stated, "We delivered a resilient start to FY2026-27, with our performance reflecting disciplined execution amid challenging weather and evolving market conditions." He noted that corn seeds sustained momentum despite an overall decline in acreage, supported by hybrid strength and focused customer engagement. Wiebusch highlighted that the company remains focused on proactive channel management and portfolio-led innovation as weather variability, including potential El Niño impacts, shapes the operating environment.

Vinit Jindal, Executive Director and Chief Financial Officer, added, "Profit After Tax increased by 15% during the quarter, supported by improved gross margins driven by favorable pricing actions and a stronger product mix." He noted that other operating expenses were higher compared with the corresponding quarter of the previous year and emphasized that improving working capital performance through inventory optimization and collections remains a key area of focus.

What the Numbers Show

The improvement in EBITDA margin to 20.03% from 18.2% year-on-year reflects better cost management and a favourable product mix, even as core operational revenue declined 4.2%. Total expenses decreased by a larger margin of 4.8%, improving pre-tax profit by nearly 20%. However, a significant portion of the bottom-line improvement stems from other income, which more than quadrupled year-on-year due to one-time gains from divestments, warranting closer scrutiny of recurring earnings drivers in subsequent quarters.