The Chatter: Bets and blueprints
Edition #47
Welcome to the 47th edition of The Chatter — a weekly newsletter where we dig through what India’s biggest companies are saying and bring you the most interesting bits of insight, whether about the business, its sector, or the wider economy. We read every major Indian earnings call and listen to the interviews so you don’t have to.
We’re always eager to improve—please share your ideas on how else we can innovate “The Chatter” format to better serve your needs.
In this edition, we have covered 19 companies across 8 industries.
FMCG
Hindustan Unilever
Marico
Britannia Industries Limited
KRBL Limited
IT
Info Edge (India)
IRCTC
Infosys
Engineering & Capital Goods
Engineers India
Elgi Equipments
GE Power India Ltd.
Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works Ltd.
Energy
Petronet LNG
Auto Ancillary
Eicher Motors Limited
Retail
Titan Company Limited
Diversified
Grasim Industries Limited
Healthcare
Torrent Pharma
Divi’s Laboratories Limited
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited
Narayana Hrudayalay
FMCG
Hindustan Unilever | Large Cap | FMCG
Hindustan Unilever Ltd. is an India-based consumer goods company offering home and personal care products, foods, and refreshments. Its diverse segments encompass home care, beauty & personal care, and foods & refreshments, including popular brands like Horlicks and Boost.
[Concall]
HUL has simplified its organizational structure by having all Business Unit Heads report directly to the CEO, aiming for increased speed, agility, accountability, and precision in execution.
“Starting January, we have made a few important changes to the HUL organisation. The intent is to build a simpler, more agile organization that can execute our priorities with greater speed, accountability and precision. All Business Unit Heads will now directly report to me instead of the earlier dual- reporting structure.”
— Priya Nair, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director
Quick commerce is a rapidly scaling and critical future channel, currently representing 3% of the business, and is expected to grow significantly in the near term.
“At the forefront of channels of future is quick commerce, the fastest-scaling route to market and a structurally critical channel for the future. It is doubling every quarter and reshaping how consumers discover, shop and replenish. While it contributes around 3% of our business today, we expect it to scale meaningfully in the near term.”
— Priya Nair, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director
HUL has created a dedicated quick commerce organization with a direct reporting line to the sales head to enable faster decisions, sharper execution, and increased focus on this high-growth channel.
“To capture fully this opportunity and lead the channel shift, we have established a dedicated quick commerce organisation. In this structure, the quick commerce lead directly reports into the HUL sales head, enabling faster decisions, sharper execution and higher focus on this high-growth channel.”
— Priya Nair, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director
Masstige and D2C are key strategic priorities, with HUL rapidly expanding its presence through organic and inorganic growth, leveraging its scale to build a replicable D2C playbook.
“Masstige and within that D2C is a critical part of our fewer, bigger bets agenda, and we are scaling our presence in this segment with speed and intent. We have been expanding our presence, both through organic and inorganic routes, leveraging HUL scale to accelerate growth by building a strong D2C playbook that can be replicated across other brands.”
— Priya Nair, Chief Executive Officer & Managing Director
Marico | Mid Cap | FMCG
Marico operates in India and internationally, manufacturing and marketing a wide range of branded consumer products. In India, its portfolio includes popular brands like Parachute, Saffola, Hair & Care, Nihar Naturals, Mediker, Livon, and Beardo. Internationally, it offers brands such as Parachute, HairCode, Fiancee, and Caivil. The company focuses on personal care, health, and wellness products, catering to diverse consumer needs across multiple markets.
[Concall]
Marico is undergoing a significant transformation to become a digitally-focused, profitable consumer powerhouse, moving beyond its traditional FMCG identity.
“We believe Marico is at an inflection point, transforming from a legacy FMCG incumbent into a scaled, profitable, digital-first consumer powerhouse.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
The acquisition of 4700BC provides Marico with immediate access to the large and growing Western snacking market with premium gourmet products.
“4700BC gives us immediate entry into the fast-growing 24,000 crores Western snacking market and it elevates it through gourmet offerings.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Marico considers its “food chessboard” largely complete regarding major acquisitions, but may pursue small “tuck-in” opportunities in the future after a brief pause.
“Definitely not in the next three weeks because my team needs rest and relaxation, they have been very busy. But we will look into tuck-ins and maybe very few spaces. But more or less at least the food chessboard is complete.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
4700BC benefits from institutional sales to premium customers (airlines, Vande Bharat trains), providing significant “forced trial” opportunities to expand brand awareness.
“The good thing about 4700BC is the because of the institutional clientele across premium passengers of a lot of foreign airlines, Air India, as well as things like Vande Bharat. We are getting a opportunity to do a lot of forced trials like what Paper Boat did with Indigo.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Marico aims to establish Cosmix as a comprehensive provider for vegetarian, plant-based, and vegan nutraceuticals, filling market gaps like alternative Omega-3 sources.
“What we want to do is a one-stop shop for people who believe in vegetarian, plant and vegan across nutraceuticals. For example, hypothetically some people don’t like fish oil in nutraceuticals like Omega-3. Can I give them an option?”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Marico differentiates Plix as a fun, beauty-focused brand from Cosmix, which targets serious vegan and vegetarian nutrition, allowing both to address distinct market needs.
“So if you look at Plix today, the center of gravity has moved into a beauty and personal care because, you know, hair and skin food. And even in nutraceuticals, it is a slightly fun brand, fun and vibrancy if you look at the way the branding and colors are. What Cosmix does is, there is a serious movement and we needed a offering towards the vegan, vegetarian, and serious nutrition and wellbeing.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Marico’s stated growth targets for new acquisitions are conservative base cases, as the company historically under-promises and over-delivers on performance.
“See, culturally as a company, we first do and then say as opposed to saying and doing. And therefore, this is a base case. When I talked about Beardo, I would have given you a much lower number and similarly for Plix.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Marico expedited recent acquisitions to avoid inflated valuations and to quickly achieve cost and operational synergies across the consolidated portfolio.
“We also wanted to hurry it because of two things, we don’t want the FOMO premium to set in, we don’t like paying 6x, 7x, in multiples. And secondly, once you have all the three, it’s much more easier to synergize and get the cost advantages.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Previous digital acquisitions like Beardo and Plix have shown significant post-acquisition growth and margin improvement, validating Marico’s acquisition strategy.
“Beardo has scaled 5x post-acquisition, which is 100% into the Marico fold in 2020, with a visible transformation in EBITDA margins. Plix has grown 6x in just two years and is on track to deliver double-digit margins in the next 12 to 15 months.”
— Saugata Gupta, MD & CEO
Britannia Industries Limited | Large Cap | FMCG
Britannia Industries Limited is a leading Indian FMCG company, primarily known for its biscuit products, which recorded robust financial performance with 9.5% revenue growth in Q3 FY25-26. The company is strategically expanding its portfolio into adjacency businesses like cake, rusk, croissant, wafers, and dairy, alongside investing in brand building and fighting regional competition.
[Concall]
Stable to marginally lower key commodity prices, particularly wheat flour, bode well for the company’s cost of goods and potential margin expansion.
“generally, commodity prices have been stable for us. If you take a look at wheat flour, which is very important, it actually came down marginally in Q3 ‘26.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Increased brand investment aims to strengthen brand equity and create sustainable competitive advantages across its portfolio.
“The second one is about elevating brand experience and investment. So obviously, we have upped our investment on the brand, and this will continue going ahead where we want to build a strong sustainable moats with investment around all our brands.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
The company is implementing focused strategies and allocating resources to counter increasing regional competition effectively.
“We’ve also put a section on focused intervention to fight regional competitors. We all know that regional competition has come up, and they are doing their best and some of them are also doing well. So we need an enterprising plan to fight them back, and we are putting specific resources to do that.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Adjacency categories are showing robust double-digit growth, especially on e-commerce platforms, indicating successful diversification and digital channel performance.
“all these 4 categories, cake, rusk, croissant and wafers are growing in double digits. And we can also see that the traction that they’re getting in e-commerce is a lot more. They are literally about 3x of biscuits ….. the fact that we are able to drive the adjacency businesses, which we talked about at 3x should also be looked at positively because the fact is these are also more relatively novel for the consumers, and we have upped the investment.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
The company aims to replicate its e-commerce success from indulgence categories to staple biscuits through increased investment, leveraging its leadership position.
“the intent is that even the other side of biscuit, which is more planned purchase, staples, right, starts moving up. So I think right now, in e-commerce, we are in a leadership position, and that gives us confidence that by doing more investment, we will be able to accelerate the growth even higher.”
— Vipin Kataria, Chief Commercial Officer, Sales and Replenishment
The company plans to counter localized, unlisted regional competitors by increasing brand investments, emphasizing brand value over aggressive trade schemes.
“on the regional player, there are 2 kind of regional players that we see. The first one are the unlisted players... these are players, which will give extra value and trade schemes and therefore go up. Now to counter them, we are building and increasing our investment in the brand like Rakshit is saying.”
— Vipin Kataria, Chief Commercial Officer, Sales and Replenishment
To compete with regional players, Britannia plans to quickly adapt their successful flavor and format innovations for targeted market interventions.
“The regional players play on their strength of understanding of flavor, consumer and they have created certain formats which are very good. So I think our game right now is to make sure that we quickly adopt and adapt the manner in which these regional players are developing these flavors and formats and very quickly hit them in certain pockets of the market where we are getting a pushback.”
— Vipin Kataria, Chief Commercial Officer, Sales and Replenishment
Britannia proactively passed on GST benefits to consumers by offering increased grammage at existing price points, reinforcing its market leadership.
“when GST transition happened, Britannia being the market leader, we were the first company to transition and the way we addressed the INR10 and the INR5 price point is that we give extra biscuits.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
The appointment of a new CMO signifies a strategic move to refresh and modernize the Britannia brand image across core businesses while leveraging its heritage.
“We would have heard the announcement that we’ve hired a new CMO, who’s going to be the CMO for all the businesses, except Dairy and international business. So obviously, the idea is to bring a refreshed part of Britannia and the products upfront to look at them in a manner which leverages on the legacy strength of Britannia, but still present ourselves as a new modern company and how do we elevate brand experiences.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Britannia plans to significantly expand its portfolio in the functional foods category, aiming for a serious and focused presence in this new segment.
“we need to do more work and where we haven’t done maybe in our assessment work is to create the category of functional foods... So we would be making plans in terms of how do I really expand our portfolio into a very relevant and focused portfolio in this segment where Britannia starts to play much more seriously.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
The company is open to inorganic growth opportunities through acquisitions to build a more comprehensive portfolio, complementing its organic growth strategies.
“we also believe where we have not taken off the blocks is that there are maybe attractive opportunities on the inorganic side and Britannia would be justifiably evaluating them. So the idea is going ahead that how do you really make a composite portfolio and everything cannot be built from organic.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
Britannia plans to adopt a ‘start-up mentality’ and agile approach to effectively combat regional competitors with focused, ambitious strategies.
“we will work as I said, small group of enterprising businesses and not treat them like national competition. So we will have a start-up mentality to fight these people, and we will make sure that the ambition that we have are more than the resources that we put and we actually deliver it better.”
— Rakshit Hargave, Chief Executive Officer and Managing Director
KRBL Limited | Mid Cap | FMCG
KRBL Limited is a leading Indian Basmati rice exporter and producer, known for its flagship “India Gate” brand. The company processes, markets, and distributes a wide range of rice varieties globally.
[Concall]
The 2025 Basmati crop yielded sufficient volume, but its quality varied regionally due to weather patterns.
“On Basmati, the 2025 harvest, which concluded recently, can best be described as adequate in volume but uneven in quality across regions.”
— Anil Kumar Mittal, Chairperson and Managing Director
India’s competitive Basmati pricing, relative to Pakistan, is strengthening its position in international markets and supporting export growth despite global uncertainties.
“From an Indian exporter perspective, the fact that Pakistan Basmati prices have been trading at a premium has reinforced India’s competitiveness in several destination markets. This has helped sustain export growth even amidst geopolitical uncertainties.”
— Anil Kumar Mittal, Chairperson and Managing Director
Q3 FY26 export revenue declined due to geopolitical restrictions on bulk exports, yet the nine-month export revenue still grew by 21% year-on-year.
“Our export revenue for Q3 FY26 stood at 357 crores compared to 563 crores in Q3 FY25, since the volume in the bulk export segment was restricted owing to geopolitical tensions. For the nine-month period, export revenue reached 1,276 crores, reflecting a 21% year-on-year increase.”
— Anil Kumar Mittal, Chairperson and Managing Director
The company maintains strong market leadership across general trade, modern trade, and e-commerce channels, despite intense competition.
“Despite competitive intensity, we remain the clear market leaders across channels. Our market share in general trade stands at 37.8%. In modern trade, it is at 39.3%, and in e-commerce, we enjoy a leading market share of 41.2%.”
— Ayush Gupta, Head of the India Business
The company is expanding its product portfolio by introducing new value-added rice categories focused on proactive health goals.
“Our fourth pillar is venturing into new product categories. Under the health brands, we are expanding into value-added rice for proactive health goals.”
— Ayush Gupta, Head of the India Business
The company’s Saudi Arabian business is performing strongly with consistent volume demand and direct wholesale relationships are ensuring good market visibility.
“The Saudi business is progressing well and we are seeing consistent volume demand with regular shipments taking place. Our current approach of working directly with wholesalers is working effectively in the interim and helping us maintain strong market visibility.”
— Anil Kumar Mittal, Chairperson and Managing Director
Geopolitical tensions in Iran are prompting extreme caution and restrictions on new business orders until the situation resolves.
“There is still tension, and that is why we are being very restrictive in concluding new business in Iran. It will take time until some conclusion takes place. At the moment, we are being very cautious about new orders from Iran.”
— Anil Kumar Mittal, Chairperson and Managing Director
The company is regaining modern trade market share after a previous decline caused by a major retailer’s private label strategy, which has since changed.
“In December, January, and February, we have seen market share regain in modern trade. The loss was primarily due to a private label push by a major retailer. That strategy has shifted, and we are seeing our market share return.”
— Ayush Gupta, Head of the India Business
IT
Info Edge (India) | Mid Cap | IT
Info Edge (India) is primarily engaged in providing online and offline services through its portals such as Naukri.com (recruitment), Jeevansathi.com (matrimony), 99acres.com (real estate), Shiksha.com (education), Iimjobs.com, and offline Quadrangle.com. It has expanded abroad into the Gulf market with Naukrigulf.com, maintaining offices in Dubai, Bahrain, Riyadh, and Abu Dhabi. The company’s entrepreneurial spirit is demonstrated by its investments in early-stage startups to capitalize on India’s growing internet market.
[Concall]
Despite an uncertain hiring environment, the recruitment business achieved a resilient 11% YOY growth in billings for Q3, demonstrating stability amidst market challenges.
“The hiring environment remains uncertain, as evident from our Job speak index as well. Despite this backdrop, the business delivered close to 11% YOY growth in billings in Q3, similar to the growth seen in Q2.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
The domestic Shiksha business is experiencing a significant negative impact from AI, leading to reduced traffic and anticipated future billing growth challenges.
“The AI related impact is now very visible in the Shiksha domestic business and has led to a sharp drop in traffic. This will also impact billing growth over time.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
Info Edge categorizes its recruitment market into premium, mid-level, and value segments based on CTC, tailoring strategies to each for increasing hiring share and revenue per hire.
“Hiring on the platform can be broadly classified into 3 different segments, premium hiring, CTC of greater than Rs. 30 lakhs per annum, mid-level hiring, CTC between Rs. 5 and Rs. 30 lakhs per annum and the value segment of CTC less than Rs. 5 lakhs per annum.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
AI-Rex, Info Edge’s AI-led automation platform, is gaining positive traction with over 100 clients and 20,000 job mandates, demonstrating its potential to significantly reduce candidate sourcing time.
“We are seeing encouraging traction in AI-Rex, our agentic AI-led workflow automation platform. It is already serving 100+ clients and has closed 20,000 job mandates, significantly reducing candidate sourcing time.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
Info Edge observes robust hiring volume growth in premium (CTC > Rs. 30 lakhs) and value (CTC < Rs. 5 lakhs) segments, but the mid-segment (Rs. 5-30 lakhs CTC) is experiencing moderated volume growth and pressure.
“Our overall sense of the market right now is that the volume growth continues to be robust in the premium and in the value segments... The mid-segment volume growth has moderated actually over the last few years is what we sense... This segment, which is the Rs. 5 to Rs. 30 lakh segments, seems to be under pressure on volume.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
India’s hiring market differs significantly from global trends due to high application volumes, making database-driven hiring more effective than job listings, and increased AI-driven spam could further enhance the value of curated platforms like Naukri.
“Globally, job listings is what works in most of the markets... Now, that’s not a very effective way of hiring in India because what tends to happen in India, at least in the mid-market and premium segments, is that there are lots of applicants... Which is why what has happened over time in a market like India is that companies have moved to hiring through the Naukri database... If these AI agents lead to more spam, more job seeker spam, I think the value of databases like Naukri may actually go up.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
Sanjeev Bikhchandani asserts that Naukri is a leader in AI adoption among Indian companies, demonstrated by its large dedicated AI/ML team, implying a strong competitive advantage in technology.
“What I gather from other companies and what I see is among Indian companies, Naukri is perhaps one of the most, if not the most advanced company in adopting the usage of AI. The kind of team we have put up in Naukri of more than 130-150 people, doing AI and ML, there aren’t too many other companies with that kind of capability.”
— Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Founder & Vice Chairman
JobHai has achieved market leadership in the Delhi NCR region, and Info Edge plans to replicate this playbook in other major cities over the next year, with a long-term goal for JobHai to contribute 10-15% of Naukri India’s revenue within five to six years.
“Now the good news is that we believe that JobHai is now the biggest sort of player in this segment, in NCR... Now that we are more confident, we will over the next 12 months, take this playbook to other cities... If in five years or six years, this becomes 10-15% of Naukri India, then I think that is what success will look like in JobHai.”
— Hitesh Oberoi, Co-Promoter & Managing Director
In Info Edge’s venture funds, winning startups are successfully securing follow-on funding rounds, with approximately 10-15 out of 27 companies in Fund One having achieved significant subsequent investments.
“The winners are being sorted out and the winners are moving ahead and getting further funding, both in Fund One, Fund Two, and one or two even in Fund Three... I would say maybe out of 27, 10 or 15 have got serious follow-on rounds and some of them are doing fairly well.”
— Sanjeev Bikhchandani, Founder & Vice Chairman
IRCTC | Mid Cap | IT
IRCTC, authorized by Indian Railways, manages catering at stations and trains, along with internet ticketing, travel, and tourism services. It offers a one-stop travel solution, including hotel bookings, tour packages, and air tickets, catering to diverse tourist needs while enhancing passenger convenience.
[Concall]
Internet ticketing remains the most profitable segment with 13.2% revenue growth to INR401 crores, dominating the digital ticketing market with 89% of reserved railway tickets booked online.
“Internet ticketing continued to be our most profitable segment and the core strength of the company. Revenue stood at INR401 crores, up 13.2% year-on-year. Nearly 89% of the reserved railway tickets in India are now booked through our online platform, underscoring our leadership in digital ticketing.”
— Sudhir Kumar, Director, Finance and Chief Financial Officer
The catering business saw significant revenue growth, including INR70 crores from Vande Bharat trains, primarily driven by the introduction of 40 new trains.
“We have seen that our revenue from Vande Bharat train this time, the billing has increased by INR70 crores and so be the license fee. So the main reason for factoring business revenue enhancement is introduction of additional 40 trains during the period.”
— Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director
The Indian Railway Ministry’s plan to introduce 260 new Vande Bharat train sets is expected to significantly boost IRCTC’s catering business in the coming years.
“So you must have seen the budget announcement and the discussion thereafter in the parliament and various media coverage, wherein it is very categorically told by rail ministry that they are going to introduce 260 Vande Bharat train sets. So these trains are already in the pipeline, and that is certainly going to add good business for IRCTC catering.”
— Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director
Both traditional and e-catering services are growing simultaneously without cannibalization, indicating a complementary and expanding market for IRCTC’s food services.
“You see there is no dearth of market for both kinds of things. Like -- as I showed you the figure of this quarter, both our normal catering also increased and our e-catering also increased by, say, 25%. So the difference is like in basic catering, we serve the daal chawal khaana type of thing. But in catering, you can add to what you eat. So both the things are complementing each other, and I don’t see any downside anywhere in both the segments. It should be win -win situation.”
— Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director
IRCTC aims to capture value-added travel services from its 1.6 million daily rail passengers, currently using other OTAs, by offering a unified platform for cross-selling.
“You see our forte is rail passengers. But now at the moment, our rail passengers are utilizing the services related -- travel-related services from other OTA sites and from unorganized sector. Even if we are able to like capture some of the value-added services, to our customers. This is a very good business proposition for us. Around 1,600,000 tickets we are booking every day.”
— Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director
IRCTC currently serves only 50-60% of the total demand for Rail Neer, indicating substantial untapped market potential.
“Around 50% and 60%, depending upon season is being served.”
— Sanjay Kumar Jain, Chairman and Managing Director
Infosys | Large Cap | IT
Infosys is a global leader in next-generation digital services and consulting, providing solutions that enable clients in over 50 countries to navigate their digital transformation. The company helps enterprises optimize operations, drive growth, and innovate through offerings in areas like AI, cloud, and legacy modernization.
[Concall]
AI adoption is unprecedentedly fast compared to previous tech transitions, indicating rapid market shift and demand for AI services.
“This time, the AI transition has been much faster than earlier transitions. Internet took more than 10 years to reach 1 billion users, and smartphones took 5 years. AI is taking a couple of years.”
— Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Infosys
The current AI shift requires fundamental architecture and operating model changes, signifying a deeper and more impactful transformation for enterprises than previous tech waves.
“What has happened this time is a much more fundamental change to the way businesses operate. This is not just a layer of technology. When smartphones came, we put a front-end on existing applications. When cloud came, we could “lift and shift” to the cloud. But this time, it is different. It is an AI-native architecture change.”
— Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Infosys
AI adoption necessitates immediate legacy system modernization, unlocking a significant new revenue stream for IT service providers addressing accumulated technical debt.
“One clear learning is that modernization of legacy systems cannot be deferred anymore. Over the last several decades, people just added to legacy systems rather than replacing them. If a firm wants to take advantage of AI, they have to clean this up.”
— Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Infosys
The shift from “buy” to “build” in software development, driven by AI’s simplification of application creation, creates a larger custom solutions market for firms like Infosys.
“The balance of advantage is also moving toward “build” rather than “buy.” Building applications has become so simple that firms may replace bought software with custom-built solutions. This benefits firms like us who build these for them.”
— Nandan Nilekani, Chairman, Infosys
AI integration is a complex, transformative endeavor requiring deep process re-engineering and changes to organizational structures, not just simple software deployment.
“Integrating AI is not just a software plugin. It is about the reimagination of processes and rewiring legacy power structures.”
— Satish HC, Chief Delivery Officer
Infosys is focused on helping clients scale AI solutions beyond initial trials, indicating a mature approach to large-scale enterprise adoption.
“Our priority has been moving customers from experimentation to scalable industry-level AI.”
— Dinesh Rao, Chief Delivery Officer
The deep, multi-faceted partnership with Microsoft positions Infosys advantageously by integrating their services across the entire technology ecosystem.
“We have a 360-degree partnership with Microsoft. They are our partners, our customers, and we are their customers.”
— Balakrishna DR, Head of Global Services
While not disclosing exact figures, Infosys management is confident that the new AI expansion opportunities will significantly exceed any negative impact from traditional service compression.
“We have not quantified the compression number for external use yet. However, we believe the expansion numbered provided by external sources looks larger than the compression.”
— Salil Parekh, CEO & MD, Infosys
Infosys differentiates itself through its proprietary Topaz Fabric platform, a clear strategic framework, and consistent execution in reskilling, giving it a competitive edge in the AI market.
“The focus is on the platform and Topaz Fabric capability where we built our own agents and can integrate others. It is also how we identified the six specific growth areas and executed by reskilling our people. Continuous execution is the real difference.”
— Salil Parekh, CEO & MD, Infosys
Despite faster prototyping with AI, the overall timelines for closing large deals have not yet significantly reduced, suggesting that sales cycles remain complex.
“Large deals signed in the last few quarters have not seen a significant shrinking in timelines yet. The timelines remain relatively similar.”
— Jayesh Sanghrajka, CFO, Infosys
Despite AI’s productivity gains, the fundamental demand for software is projected to grow exponentially, ensuring a sustained and massive opportunity for IT services.
“The amount of software demand is becoming 100x the current size. Even with 10x productivity benefits, there is a massive amount to be built. Economic growth always drives a need for new features and technology. It is not a static world.”
— Salil Parekh, CEO & MD, Infosys
Engineering & Capital Goods
Engineers India | Small Cap | Engineering & Capital Goods
Engineers India Limited is engaged in construction and maintenance of industrial facilities such as refineries, chemical plants, etc. The company also engaged in architectural and engineering activities and related technical consultancy. The company also helps its clients with management consultancy activities. Additionally, the company is also in research and experimental development on natural sciences and engineering.
[Concall]
EIL has achieved its highest-ever order book of INR 15,670 crores by January 2026, indicating strong future revenue potential.
“Considering the above order inflow in January, the current order book stands at around INR 15,670 crores. This is the highest order book position in the history of EIL.”
— Sanjay Jindal, Director, Finance
EIL expects India’s energy demand to double by 2040, driven by government plans to expand crude refining capacity and increase natural gas’s share in the energy mix, providing long-term project opportunities.
“By 2040, our energy demand is going to be doubled. And fossil fuel will be part of this energy mix in the 2040 also. So government is planning to increase the crude refining capacity and increasing the share of gas -- natural gas in the energy mix from 6% to 15%.”
— Vivek Midha, Chief General Manager, Marketing and Business Development
The reversal of penalty provisions is a standard contractual risk management practice where funds set aside are released to profit if a project is executed without penalties.
“Gentleman, please try and appreciate that this is a provision of the contract, okay? Whenever a contract is awarded, this is a risk provision you always make in any of the pricing you quote. So you make a provision, you keep that money aside. And when the project is executed, you don’t face any consequences, then it is released as part of the revenue and it is added to your profit. It’s a risk provision which is always made in any of the contracts.”
— Sanjay Jindal, Director, Finance
EIL’s revised LSTK business model prioritizes cost-plus Open Book Estimate contracts, ensuring fixed margins and transferring cost escalation risks to the client.
“Now we have changed the business model. As my colleague said, we are already targeting open book estimate, which is cost plus contracts only. So whatever cost is incurred, client is reimbursing that. And upon the cost reimbursed, we are charging our fixed margin -- fixed markup. So our markup is intact, and there is no escalation from our -- in the cost because escalation in the cost is borne by the client.”
— Sanjay Jindal, Director, Finance
EIL foresees substantial projects in the Indian petchem and refinery sector due to government plans for significant capacity expansion by 2030, despite the cyclical nature of these projects.
“Government has already indicated that they are going to increase the refining capacity as well as the petchem capacity by 2030. So you have a lot of projects in pipeline. But these are the cyclical projects.”
— Vivek Midha, Chief General Manager, Marketing and Business Development
EIL focuses on specialized, high-value infrastructure projects like townships, R&D facilities, and convention centers for institutional clients, rather than general residential construction.
“These kind of niche segments we are targeting. We don’t go into the regular residential building construction. We go into the niche areas wherein the client wants to create a township, wants to create a research and development facility or wants to create a convention center.”
— R.P. Batra, Executive Director
The Ramagundam plant has stabilized and is operating at 100% capacity, ensuring continued profit generation for EIL in Q4 FY26 and beyond.
“At present, Ramagundam plant is running on full capacity. And till now, it is 13th Feb. Plant is running well, around 100% capacity. So we are sure that the profit will be realized. Profit will be continued to be realized in the fourth quarter also and next year so. Plant is almost stabilized.”
— R.P. Batra, Executive Director
EIL sets a minimum revenue target of INR 4,000 crores for FY27, expecting to surpass its projected FY26 revenue of over INR 4,000 crores.
“We will be reaching more than INR 4,000 crores in terms of revenue. And definitely, INR 4,000 crores will be the minimum target for the next year also. And we are sure that we will add some more figure to this.”
— Sanjay Jindal, Director, Finance
Elgi Equipments | Small Cap | Engineering & Capital Goods
Elgi Equipments Limited is a global leader in manufacturing innovative and technologically advanced compressed air systems. They offer a wide range of products including rotary screw compressors, reciprocating compressors, centrifugal compressors, dryers, filters, and accessories. With a focus on productivity and low cost of ownership, their solutions are widely used across various industries.
[Concall]
Analyst asked about whether India’s tariff advantage could lead to exponential demand growth for Indian compressor makers like ELGi, and whether the company is prepared for such a scenario.
“So, in a B2B kind of business, Salil, especially capital goods, it doesn’t behave to price elasticity. You know, we lower the price, it doesn’t mean you will double your revenue, right? So, the idea is when you are talking about capital goods in a B2B space, it is about getting in front of the customer through various means, whether it is through direct means or through channel or whether it is digital platforms. So those are the things that we have to get in. Now, when we get in front of the customers, our win rates are very good. So, the challenge for ELGI is to get in front of the customer more often. Now, this pricing or the cost advantage that we have now got by virtue of whatever we have done internally is going to give us some degree of freedom in terms of running schemes wherever there is a dual multi brand distributor who’s carrying our brand as well as other brands. Maybe through this we will get a better share of the wallet, but I don’t see the cost behaving in a very elastic manner, sales behaving in an elastic manner.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Analyst asked about the domestic market outlook for ELGi post-budget announcements, including tariff reductions for biopharma and textile sectors, GST changes, and which sectors have seen strong or weak growth.
“So, the let me first give you a sense for what are the sectors that have grown. I think the sectors contributing to infrastructure like cement and steel and have definitely had challenges but textile, obviously for the reason of tariff, had some challenges. But otherwise, the sectoral growth has been across all industrial sectors. Now, in respect to the new budget where they have given concessions to, I mean, or strategic initiatives on bio biopharma kind of a thing, we are present in that segment. We have some extremely compelling products for that segment, and we will continue to do that. But do I see it exploding in terms of revenue? No, I don’t see that happening.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
The company has successfully offset the 50% tariff impact, and future tariff reductions will directly boost margins as prices have not been lowered.
“the team had done an outstanding job of actually compensating for the entire impact of the 50% tax right now... We have been able to more than recover the tariff impact now, depending on where the tariff is going to land, that difference is going to be pure margin for us in the future.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Company sales grew 18%, but EBITDA underperformed primarily due to higher employee and other fixed costs.
“Our sales has grown by 18%, but the EBITDA should have been close to 2000 million, but it is actually around 1400 and the primary reason is on 2 counts, the employee cost and the other fixed cost.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Elgi is strengthening its historically weak presence in Southeast Asia with new leadership and reorganization efforts, expecting improved performance in 2-3 years.
“Southeast Asia is a significant market, but our presence there has traditionally been weak. We are reorganising there, we have brought in new leadership there, and we are hoping that over the next 2 to 3 years there will be a change in our presence in Southeast Asia.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
While the exact new tariff rate is unclear, it will be significantly lower than 50%, promising a positive financial impact in the next fiscal year.
“We don’t know whether it is 18% or there is going to be iron and steel surcharge which could increase it beyond 18%... but it is significantly lower than 50%. So, we expect that there will be a very positive impact in the next financial year”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Despite market optimism, the company faces global inventory challenges due to actual sales not meeting expectations, leading to a focus on reduction programs.
“Our challenges have been inventory all over the world. There have been different challenges, while there has been optimism in the market, but the actual result has been not as optimistic as one will expect. So there is an inventory problem.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Current inventory levels are excessive at six months, and the company aims to reduce them to an optimal three to three and a half months, aligning with shipment lead times.
“So, to answer your question, 6 months is excessive inventory, right? When you have a lead time of shipment of about two and a half months, your inventory should be only about three – three and a half months, right? So that’s really where we are headed.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Chinese imports hold a 25-30% volume share in the domestic market, but Elgi plans to compete by offering new products with competitive pricing alongside superior quality and service.
“The Chinese imports are close to, in our estimate, 25 to 30% of the market right in volume terms, not in value... our products that we have designed are Price Wise as competitive, but we will provide ELGI quality, ELGI reliability, and ELGI level of service.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
The new low-cost screw compressors are expected to be priced 30-40% lower than current models, targeting a different market segment.
“if our current compressor is selling at 100, these machines are sold at probably around 60 or 70, right? So, I would say somewhere between 30 to 40% low, right? So that’s really the gap.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
Rising raw material prices are a concern but not unique, and the company plans to absorb or pass on costs based on market response, expressing confidence in management.
“So yes, this is a matter of concern for us, but it is not uniquely ELGI. We are waiting to see how
the market is responding. First of all, we want to know whether this is permanent kind of for the
next few years at least or is it just a temporary Kind of a blip, especially copper. When you look at
it, there are mine strikes in Chile and there are some disruptions in some mines in Indonesia. We
are evaluating this carefully, but we are ready to absorb these. To the extent that is required in
the market, we are willing to pass it on to the extent that the market is responding to it. So, I don’t
see it as a uniquely ELGI problem. We will get over it. I am not concerned about it.”
— Jairam Varadaraj, Managing Director
GE Power India Ltd. | Small Cap | Engineering & Capital Goods
GE Power India Ltd. provides solutions for power generation, focusing on services for thermal power plants in India. The company is strategically shifting from long-gestation EPC projects to asset-light, high-margin core services, targeting both GE and non-GE assets.
[Concall]
The company anticipates a robust macroeconomic environment in India with strong GDP growth projections, which should support demand in the energy sector.
“As per the Economic Survey 2025–2026, real GDP growth for 2026 is projected at around 7.4%, supported by broad-based demand, improving rural consumption, and strengthening industrial activities. This momentum is expected to continue into FY27 with real GDP growth projected in the range of 6.8% to 7.2%.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
Regulatory changes for Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) installations have altered the market size, with Category C plants (70 GW) now exempt, impacting future order prospects for the company.
“In the Union Budget for FY27 presented in February 2026, the Ministry of Environment, Forest and Climate Change revised the notification limiting FGD installation to about 630 GW of India’s thermal power stations by December 2027 and December 2028 progressively, while taking Category C—about 70 GW—out of the scope of the policy.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
The company’s strategic pivot to higher-margin, quicker cash-generating, and asset-light projects has improved business stability and operational focus.
“Our deliberate shift toward high-margin, shorter cash cycle, and lower working capital-intensive opportunities, alongside a calibrated scaling back from long-gestation projects, has further strengthened business stability over the period.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
A significant portion of the quarter’s profit increase was due to one-time financial settlements and provision reversals totaling 84 crores, which investors should consider when assessing sustainable profitability.
“This steep profitability increase is also complemented by certain one-off items, such as the reversal of ECL provisions for BHEL collections amounting to 37 crores, the Solapur extension of time and LD settlement resulting in a provision reversal of 22 crores, and the JP Bina and Nigri full and final settlement providing a 25 crore positive impact.”
— Ashish Singhal, CFO
The company is successfully penetrating the broader Indian thermal power services market, with more than half of its core service orders now originating from non-GE installed assets.
“India’s target market for us is about 2,500 crores, comprising both GE and non-GE assets. We are progressing strongly in non-GE assets; as I mentioned, 53% of our core services orders this quarter came from non-GE assets.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
The company explicitly states that it has no current plans to enter the nuclear power sector and that this market is not included in its future growth projections.
“Regarding nuclear, that sector is currently out of the domain for GE Power India Ltd. The 2,500 crore target market I mentioned does not include nuclear.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
The company is pivoting away from long-gestation EPC (Engineering, Procurement, and Construction) projects to focus on its role as a technology and service provider.
“We are shifting our strategy from EPC to being a technology supplier.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
The market for new Flue Gas Desulfurization (FGD) orders has effectively halted following revised government regulations, with remaining opportunities progressing very slowly.
“Since the government notification, we have not seen any new ordering for FGDs. Category C is out of scope. For Category A, about 8 GW remains, with 2 GW under tendering, but progress has been very slow.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
Following the demerger of its Durgapur facility, the company has secured a 5-year supply agreement with JSW Energy to ensure uninterrupted access to critical boiler spare parts.
“Regarding Durgapur, we have signed a 5-year supply agreement with JSW Energy to ensure continuity for boiler spare parts while we develop an alternate supply chain.”
— Puneet Bhatla, Managing Director
Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works Ltd. | Small Cap | Engineering & Capital Goods
Knowledge Marine & Engineering Works Ltd. is a dredging and marine engineering company based in India. It also engages in commercial shipbuilding and chartering of various vessels, aiming for a prominent industry position with expanding operations and fleet strength.
Dredging is the process of removing sand, silt, or debris from the bottom of rivers, ports, or seabeds. It’s done to deepen waterways, prevent flooding, or create land for construction.
[Concall]
This indicates a successful diversification into commercial shipbuilding with significant new orders, broadening the company’s revenue streams.
“We entered the commercial shipbuilding segment, securing orders worth over 230 crores from the Inland Waterways Authority of India for the supply of workboats, accommodation boats, survey boats, and cutter suction dredgers to be executed over a period of 2 years.”
— Mrs. Kanak Kewalramani, Director and Chief Financial Officer
These long-term contracts provide substantial revenue visibility and reinforce the company’s commitment to sustainable and innovative maritime operations.
“We received significant long-term orders from Visakhapatnam Port and VOC Port for the construction and chartering of 60-ton bollard pull green tugs with a total contract value of approximately 700 crores to be executed over a period of 15 years.”
— Mrs. Kanak Kewalramani, Director and Chief Financial Officer
The capital raise strengthens the company’s financial position, supporting future growth initiatives through fleet expansion and project execution.
“To support our growth journey, we successfully raised 285 crores through a preferential issue of equity shares and warrants. This reinforces investor confidence in our long-term vision. The capital will primarily be deployed towards fleet expansion and for projects at hand and in the pipeline.”
— Mrs. Kanak Kewalramani, Director and Chief Financial Officer
The company expects a significantly lower effective tax rate due to the tonnage tax scheme, and current performance levels in revenue and profit margins are considered a new benchmark for future operations.
“Our guidance is that it will be less than 1% of the total turnover. That is what we believe the total tax implication will be. Regarding the performance, we have moved toward higher revenue and higher profit margins, so this can be considered the benchmark going forward.”
— Sujay, CEO
The high utilization rate of the company’s fleet, especially 100% for port ancillary craft and 74-82% for dredgers, signifies efficient asset deployment and strong demand for services.
“It is 100% utilized; none of our equipment is idle as of today. Dredgers are deployed for between 270 to 300 days out of 365. Regarding port ancillary craft, they are utilized for the full 365 days.”
— Sujay, CEO
The company sees significant and growing demand in the inland waterway dredging sector, driven by government initiatives, suggesting ample opportunity for multiple players.
“There is sufficient demand for Knowledge Marine, DCI, and several other competitors because, as seen in the budget, approximately 20 more national waterways are required to be made navigable. This demand is huge. Over the next 5 years, inland waterway dredging demand will increase multifold.”
— Sujay, CEO
The company reiterates that DCI’s planned investments in large dredgers for ports do not pose direct competition to Knowledge Marine’s river-focused operations due to differing asset specifications and operational environments.
“Their equipment is for ports and is not directly overlapping our asset base. The cutter suction dredger DCI plans to invest in is a 3,000-kilowatt cutter with a draft in excess of 3 meters. Rivers require a draft of 2.5 to 3 meters. Their vessel cannot enter rivers; it is meant for rock dredging or hard strata dredging in ports.”
— Sujay, CEO
The company highlights its minimal market share in dredging and small craft operations, indicating significant headroom for growth within a large and expanding market.
“In dredging, across ports, rivers, and dams, we are currently at less than 2% market share. In the small craft business across 12 major ports, there are between 550 to 600 vessels required. We presently have fewer than 25 vessels deployed.”
— Sujay, CEO
The company’s shipbuilding strategy is a balanced mix of building vessels for direct sales to government entities and for integration into its own operational fleet, enhancing both revenue and asset base.
“We have a shipbuilding contract from the Inland Waterways Authority of India for 240 crores to build and supply vessels. The green tugs are being built for our own fleet. It is a mix; we are building for supply to the government and building for our own operating company.”
— Sujay, CEO
A substantial 100 crore investment in the shipyard is projected to significantly expand its capacity, enabling a top-line revenue potential of 500-700 crores within three years.
“We are going to invest close to 100 crores in the shipyard via a mix of debt and equity. This will create a facility for building tugs and smaller vessels. We believe we can reach a top line of between 500 to 700 crores with this facility three years down the line.”
— Sujay, CEO
Energy
Petronet LNG | Mid Cap | Energy
Petronet LNG specializes in the import, storage, and regasification of Liquefied Natural Gas (LNG). It serves corporate clients including oil and gas entities, gas aggregators, petrochemical firms, refineries, city gas distributors, fertilizer and power plants, and other industrial entities. The company plays a key role in India’s LNG supply chain.
[Concall]
Connecting the Kochi terminal to the national gas grid is projected to trigger a substantial four-to-five-fold increase in City Gas Distribution (CGD) demand over the next 4-5 years, boosting utilization.
“Once it is connected with the national gas grid, number one, part of the question you yourself has answered. Once it is the CGD demand, as you know, it is going to be minimum, minimum four to fivefold in the next 4 to 5 years.”
— Gyanendra Kumar Sharma, Group General Manager and President, Marketing
On LNG price softening and India’s energy growth:
“LNG prices are going to soften in the next 5 to 7 years, owing to the capacity buildup from supplier side. And as we know, other geographical regions across the world are either saturated or maybe not having that economic growth — consistent growth of India, leading to energy consumption, virtually more than 40% incremental energy consumption is expected to come from India.”
— Gyanendra Kumar Sharma, Group General Manager and President, Marketing
On the universe of demand sectors:
“Given the softening of LNG prices, India itself is having ready-made demand of 25 million tons from power. Apart from multiple refineries and petrochemical plants are under expansion and India’s capacity buildup of petrochemical itself is likely to double. Considering gas prices softening, we are expecting refineries, petrochemical, power, apart from CGD. Every sector will contribute hugely.”
— Gyanendra Kumar Sharma, Group General Manager and President, Marketing
The company anticipates global LNG prices to become more affordable in the coming years due to new liquefaction facilities, which is expected to boost India’s gas consumption.
“So with favorable gas prices, which we are expecting in the coming years because of a lot of liquefaction facilities coming up in Middle East, U.S., Mozambique. So there will be affordable LNG in the market and it will definitely increase the gas consumption in the country.”
— Saurav Mitra, Director, Finance & Chief Financial Officer
Any potential deal to buy LNG from the U.S. will only proceed if the gas is available at an affordable price.
“Yesterday, during the press meet, our MD has already clarified that such a deal is only possible if LNG is available at an affordable price.”
— Saurav Mitra, Director, Finance & Chief Financial Officer
LNG prices around $7 to $8 per MMBtu are considered affordable for the power industry to become viable, benchmarked against alternative fuel options.
“But definitely, it has to be competitive with respect to the other alternative fuel options. Definitely, when I’m selling alternative energy options, I’m not comparing it with whole. But yes, maybe if we take the pricing available today of other alternate fuels, something around $7 to $8 per MMBtu would be, I think, affordable for the power industry to get up and running.”
— Saurav Mitra, Director, Finance & Chief Financial Officer
Auto Ancillary
Eicher Motors Limited | Large Cap | Auto Ancillary
Eicher Motors Limited is an Indian multinational automotive company, best known as the parent company of Royal Enfield, a prominent manufacturer of middleweight motorcycles. The company also operates a joint venture with Volvo Group, VE Commercial Vehicles (VECV), which produces commercial vehicles.
[Concall]
Royal Enfield maintains strong dominance and continues to gain market share in the middle-sized motorcycle segment, reinforcing its leadership position.
“We continue to gain market share across the board, particularly in the middle-sized motorcycle segment, where Royal Enfield has been able to continue its dominance at 88.9% exit market share.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Royal Enfield’s partnership with Amazon India to enable online sales for its 350cc range aims to enhance customer accessibility and streamline the purchasing process.
“To improve ease of purchase, we announced a partnership with Amazon India, enabling customers in select cities to buy Royal Enfield Motorcycles online through seamless end-to-end digital journey for the 350cc range.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Eicher Motors is investing INR 958 crores in a brownfield expansion at its Cheyyar facility to increase Royal Enfield’s annual production capacity to 2 million units by FY27-28, addressing rising demand.
“EML Board has just approved a proposal for capacity expansion at Royal Enfield. This will be achieved through a brownfield expansion at Cheyyar manufacturing facility at Tamil Nadu, taking our annual production capacity to 20 lakh units per year from the current 1.4 million to meet the rapidly expanding existing and the projected future demand. For this expansion, we will invest an estimate of almost INR 958 crores over a period of 2 years, reaching the target capacity by FY 27-28.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
While 450cc and 650cc segments have adequate capacity with current utilization, the significant demand growth in the 350cc segment is driving the immediate need for capacity expansion.
“So for 450cc and 650cc, there is a capacity which is built, which is good enough because currently, the utilization is slightly lower. With the debottlenecking and a bit of automations, we can cater to the coming year’s growth. And 350cc, obviously, because during the festive time itself compared to last year, we grew almost 50% with the higher base itself. So there is a demand for the 350cc, which is continuing.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
A new trade deal could significantly reduce tariffs on U.S. exports to 18%, down from 41-42% (including steel/aluminum tariffs), potentially boosting sales in the U.S. market.
“With the latest trade deal, which has been done, the rate is 18%. However, there is a steel and aluminum tariff, that, there is no clarity as of now. We are waiting for a bit more clarity on that. With that, the weighted average tariff is almost about 41% to 42% currently. If that goes off, mostly it will go off. That’s what we are expecting in the fine print, then it will become an 18% for us, which is a good sign.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
The 650cc and 450cc segments are showing signs of recovery after a post-GST drop, with new product launches like the Classic 650 and Bullet 650 generating healthier inquiries and expected growth.
“It went as good as almost about 40%, but the rate of recovery of 650 cc started showing a positive sign within about a month’s time and 450 cc has started showing the rate of recovery now. So with the Classic 650, which we launched, Bullet 650, which we have launched, now the inquiries for Classic 650 and Bullet 650 is also healthier. So that is also going to grow.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Both rural and semi-urban markets are experiencing significant growth, with all 350cc models, including Classic, showing strong traction post-GST changes.
“Rural and semi-urbans are really, really growing. So when there is a growth, then the next cut which we are talking about is which product is actually showing a lot of traction. Post GST, if I have to give you some color, all our 350cc models are equally growing, including Classic.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Royal Enfield remains focused on the 250cc-750cc middleweight segment, with current capacity expansion primarily addressing immediate strong demand for 350cc models, while new projects for other adjacencies are also underway.
“Our focus has always been the middleweight 250cc to 750cc. Currently, we are at about 350cc, 450cc and 650cc. You will see the adjacencies which are there, but the demand as of now is 350cc. So here and now, the task in hand is how do I fulfill that demand and the capacity built has to go around that immediately. But there are enough projects which are going on.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Royal Enfield is cautiously approaching the electric mobility market with its “Flying Flea” brand, preparing to launch the Classic-styled C6 product soon, followed by the Scrambler-version S6 later in the year.
“So Flying Flea is our endorsed brand of Royal Enfield for the city, city plus electric mobility. We have 2 products, which we unveiled, one is called C6, which is a Classic style one, another one is an S6, which is a Scrambler version. C6 is almost ready for production. You will see it in the market soon, but we will be doing a cautious approach of not going around and then saying here is a product.”
— B. Govindarajan, Managing Director – Eicher Motors Limited & Chief Executive Officer - Royal Enfield
Retail
Titan Company Limited | Large Cap | Retail
Titan Company Limited is a leading Indian lifestyle company with products spanning jewellery, watches, and eyecare. It is known for its strong brands like Tanishq, Titan, and CaratLane.
[Concall]
Titan completed the acquisition of a 67% stake in Damas, and its financial results will be consolidated into Titan’s from Q4 FY26 onwards, impacting future reporting.
“We are very happy to announce that we completed 67% stake acquisition of Damas. And the accounting of that, you will see from 1st January, consolidation of Damas books into Titan consolidation will start from 1st January. So quarter 4 results, you will have Damas consolidation.”
— Ashok Sonthalia, Chief Financial Officer
Investors should increasingly focus on Titan’s consolidated financial performance due to growing international and subsidiary businesses.
“I urge you to start looking at consolidated performance as well because that’s going to be increasingly important.”
— Ashok Sonthalia, Chief Financial Officer
The company recorded an exceptional item of INR 152 crores (consolidated) due to the new labor code impact in Q3 FY26 financials.
“The other important development, which all companies have faced in India, that labour code impact has been accounted for in our quarter 3 books. The impact on a consolidated level is INR 152 crores, which has been shown an exceptional item in the consolidated as well as INR 138 crores in stand-alone financials.”
— Ashok Sonthalia, Chief Financial Officer
The company is adapting to higher gold prices by focusing on lightweight and lower-carat jewellery (18-carat, 14-carat, 9-carat) to maintain accessibility and price points for consumers.
“I think the agility perhaps is only on responding to the need to be accessible in jewellery and the need to keep price points clearly in mind so that we offer choice as close to what we offered in the past at certain price points and therefore, the pivot to lightweight jewellery across the board, introducing 18-carat traditional gold jewellery also in certain parts of the country where we have seen a greater openness to it.”
— Arun Narayan, CEO, Jewellery Division
Titan mitigates supply chain risks from gold price volatility and lead times by largely supplying gold to its vendor partners.
“As far as we are concerned, even when we work with our vendor partner ecosystem, we supply the gold, et cetera, to a large extent. So that doesn’t really impact us, the concerns you might have had in terms of either lead time or volatility in price, et cetera, because it’s mostly our gold.”
— Ajoy Chawla, Managing Director, Titan Company Limited
Studded jewellery buyer growth continues to outperform overall buyer growth by a few percentage points consistently over multiple quarters.
“Yes, it is a few percentage points better and has been also the case last many quarters.”
— Arun Narayan, CEO, Jewellery Division
While studded jewellery shows higher buyer growth, plain gold jewellery exhibits significantly higher ticket size growth due to rising gold prices, impacting overall revenue contribution.
“Our buyer growth on studded has been a few percentage points higher quarter-on-quarter... However, the ticket size growth on gold, because of the gold content being higher, is much higher in plain gold than it is on studded jewellery because diamond prices aren’t going up, but gold is going up.”
— Arun Narayan, CEO, Jewellery Division
Jewellery purchase plans, particularly the grammage-based Golden Advantage, consistently contribute 20-25% of business, with customers increasingly preferring it in the current inflationary environment.
“Anywhere from 20% to 25% of our business comes from our jewellery purchase plans, and that’s kind of sustained even at this point in time. Although we are seeing more customers prefer the new Golden Advantage over Golden Harvest, which is very logical and probably a more appropriate solution for these times.”
— Arun Narayan, CEO, Jewellery Division
Titan Eye Plus is driving premiumization through its multi-brand strategy, offering 15-20 international brands, benefiting from an NRI season effect in Q3.
“So in terms of our positioning, right, I mean, Titan Eye Plus is positioned as a multi-price, multi-brand destination. So when it comes to multi-brand, today, we offer anywhere between 15 to 20 international brands. So there is a kind of a tailwind for premiumization through our international brand collaboration.”
— N. S. Raghavan, CEO, Eyecare Division
Damas will maintain its focus on the Arab segment and network expansion, while a few select stores in appropriate catchments are being converted to Tanishq.
“Damas will continue to grow on the Arab segment, and they will continue to grow their retail network on that side. There were few stores, which were in the catchment, which was more appropriate for Tanishq kind of offering, and some of those stores are getting converted.”
— Ashok Sonthalia, Chief Financial Officer
Titan’s strategy involves leveraging its diverse brand portfolio (Tanishq, Mia, CaratLane) to capture and expand its customer base in the sub-INR 100,000 segment, especially for studded jewellery.
“As a portfolio of brand, between Tanishq, which has a substantial contribution of buyers in the sub-1 lakh, sub-50,000, Mia, CaratLane and hopefully, going forward in the future beYon, which is a different kind of play, I think we should look at the portfolio play eventually, and that’s our game plan, to ensure that we own that customer in the sub-100,000 space and more importantly, bring in many more customers in the studded space in the sub-100,000.”
— Ajoy Chawla, Managing Director, Titan Company Limited
Diversified
Grasim Industries Limited | Large Cap | Diversified
Grasim Industries Limited, a flagship company of the Aditya Birla Group, is a diversified Indian conglomerate with a presence across various sectors. Its businesses include viscose staple fiber, cement (UltraTech Cement), chemicals, financial services (Aditya Birla Capital), and new ventures like decorative paints (Birla Opus) and B2B e-commerce (Birla Pivot).
[Concall]
Birla Opus significantly increased its revenue market share in the decorative paints segment by over 300 basis points year-on-year in Q3 FY26.
“During the Quarter 3 of FY26, Birla Opus, the third largest decorative paints player, expanded its revenue market share by more than 300 basis points year-on-year based on internal estimates and announced results of listed paints majors …. The presence of Birla Opus has crossed 10,400 towns across 35 states and union territories. We have covered all 50,000 population centers across India and more than 75% of the 10,000 to 50,000 population centers.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Birla Opus has achieved significant brand recognition, becoming the second most recalled paint brand in urban markets according to a brand tracking study.
“According to Opus commissioned brand track study, the “Top of mind” brand recall for Birla Opus has surged into double-digits, positioning us as the 2nd most recalled paints brand in urban markets.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Including Birla Opus, the decorative paints industry’s Q3 FY26 revenue growth reached 5-6% and volume growth 11-12%, indicating strong underlying consumer demand despite rate realization challenges.
“When we add Birla Opus Q3 performance to these four players’ decorative paints business, industry revenue growth, including Opus, rises to 5% to 6% and volume growth jumps to 11% to 12%. In my economic understanding, double-digit volume growth reflects good-to-strong consumer demand.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Birla Pivot, the B2B e-commerce business, has already surpassed an annualized revenue run rate of Rs. 8,500 crores, significantly ahead of its FY27 target.
“Coming to Birla Pivot: The B2B e-commerce business crossed Rs. 8,500 crores annualized revenue run rate ARR mark and remains on track to surpass the annual revenue of Rs. 8,500 crores, well ahead of FY27 guidance.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Grasim’s Financial Services segment is a rapidly growing part of its portfolio, with revenue up 29% year-on-year across all its offerings due to a multi-channel strategy.
“In the Financial Services, it is one of the fastest growing businesses in our portfolio. This is driven by their multi-channel approach, aimed at providing customers with seamless experience across channels of interaction. The revenue was up by 29% year-on-year, led by all-round performance across lending, asset management, insurance, and advisory services business.”
— Hemant Kadel, Chief Financial Officer
Despite being a single-digit market share player, Grasim remains confident in achieving Rs. 10,000 crores revenue in the paints business by the third full year of operation due to large capacity, pan-India presence, and growing consumer demand.
“We are still a single-digit market share player. We have a large capacity. Our presence is now on a Pan-India basis. We have reached every 50,000 population down. We are at least more than 75% of 10,000 to 50,000 population town. So, the growths are happening. We have a large portfolio of businesses. Consumer demand is building up and we remain confident and we continue to guide that we will deliver the Rs. 10,000 crores in third full year operation.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
The recent 2-6% price increase in paints was strategic, aimed at narrowing the price gap with market leaders rather than a response to raw material pressures.
“We always want to maintain a particular distance from the market leaders, and we felt the distance was slightly more than what that was necessary and we are bridging that gap. That is the objective of price increase and there is no other objective.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Birla Pivot is on track to achieve breakeven by the end of FY27, showing strong progress on profitability alongside its revenue growth.
“On the profitability front, we are making progress similar to how we have done, how we have executed on the revenue side, and the growth has been, excellent over the last few quarters. We have been making good progress on bridging the gap so that we can get to breakeven as well. I think from our current estimates, we will exit FY27 at a breakeven level.”
— Sandeep Komaravelly, Chief Executive Officer, Birla Pivot, B2B E-Commerce Business
The recent trade deal with the USA is expected to create a positive upside for India’s epoxy exports to the US market, although specific volume ramp-up details are yet to be determined.
“The US deal probably will get actioned before the European deal. So, I am seeing a positive upside on export of epoxy from India to the US. Now, how much quantity that will be, how that will ramp up, etc., is a matter of individual customer qualifications and those kinds of things, that is a little bit too much detail to get into right now. But, we do see a positive impact on that side.”
— Jayant Dhobley, Business Head, Chemicals Cellulosic Fashion Yarn And Insulators Business
The India-Europe FTA is anticipated to have a more significant and lasting positive impact on the Indian chemicals industry, including epoxy exports, in the long term compared to the US deal.
“I think the India-Europe FTA in the longer-term will have a much more significant impact on the Indian chemicals industry, probably in my personal opinion, more than the US. Of course, the speed at which Europe will ratify, all this will get down into law, etc., will be a little bit slower, but I believe that will be more sticky.”
— Jayant Dhobley, Business Head, Chemicals Cellulosic Fashion Yarn And Insulators Business
Grasim’s paints business currently has a single-digit contribution from institutional sales but aims to reach the industry average of 12-15% by FY27, leveraging a strong pipeline despite the longer gestation period.
“To our understanding, the retail-institutional business mix is 85-15. We are not yet there on that mix. We are still a single-digit on the institutional business, retail is much faster to take off and institutional is a much longer gestation period. The message that I was communicating is that we have a strong pipeline and hopefully by FY27, we should be able to come closer to the industry average between 12%-15% on overall contribution from institutional business.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Grasim reiterates its guidance for the paints segment, aiming to achieve a profitable number two market position within three years of full-scale operation.
“Yes, we maintain our guidance. I will repeat. Within three years of full scale operation, we are targeting to be able to reach a profitable #2 position.”
— Himanshu Kapania, Managing Director And Business Head – Birla Opus Paints
Healthcare
Torrent Pharma | Large Cap | Healthcare
Torrent Pharmaceuticals Ltd. is a leading Indian pharmaceutical company with a significant presence in branded generics markets globally, particularly in India and Brazil. The company focuses on chronic and sub-chronic therapies, alongside expanding its international generics business in the US and Germany.
[Concall]
Strong double-digit growth in key branded markets, India and Brazil, indicating robust domestic and international branded generics performance.
“The India business grew at 14% and Brazil grew at 27%. Constant currency growth in Brazil for the quarter was 10% while the secondary sales grew at 13%.”
— Sudhir Menon, Executive Director Finance and CFO
Generic segments showed mixed results, with strong US growth offset by a decline in Germany due to unresolved supply chain issues.
“On the generic side, the US business grew at 19% and Germany grew at 8%. In constant currency terms, Germany revenues have declined by 6% mainly due to the continued disruption at a third-party supplier.”
— Sudhir Menon, Executive Director Finance and CFO
The JB acquisition is progressing with consolidation underway, and the company expects to complete the full merger as per original timelines.
“Effectively, from January 21, JB will start getting consolidated into Torrent Pharma. As a next step, we expect the SEBI approval for the merger scheme soon and we will file the merger application with NCLT over the next few days.”
— Sudhir Menon, Executive Director Finance and CFO
Curatio’s substantial growth is attributed to increased advertising and sales force expansion, signalling successful integration and market penetration strategies.
“The Curatio business grew at 27% in Q3 and also 27% in YTD nine months for the year driven by strong demand generation on account of OTC ad spends and field force expansion.”
— Aman, Head - India Business
The company holds a robust product pipeline for the Brazilian market, with numerous molecules awaiting regulatory approval, suggesting future growth potential.
“Torrent has a rich pipeline of 60 molecules which are currently awaiting approval at ANVISA.”
— Sanjay Gupta, Executive Director International Business
US business growth is driven by successful new product introductions achieving target market share and increased volume from existing agreements, indicating positive traction.
“In the US, we registered constant currency revenues of $36 million, up by 12%. Growth is coming from our new launches where we have achieved our target market share and we are also seeing increased purchase volume on existing contracts.”
— Sanjay Gupta, Executive Director International Business
The German business’s supply disruption is prolonged due to external regulatory hurdles with a third-party supplier, making a resolution timeline uncertain.
“Unfortunately, I cannot give a timeline because our supplier is caught up in regulatory issues and I do not have visibility as to when they will start manufacturing again.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
The company is actively seeking alternative suppliers and in-house manufacturing for affected products, though a full resolution for the German supply issues is 3-4 quarters away.
“It is time-consuming, but we are working on it. We started work on it last quarter. It will take at least 3-4 quarters to get an alternate supplier on board. We are trying to move some of the products to our own facilities.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
Torrent lacks in-house fill-and-finish capacity for injectable GLP-1 and plans to partner for its launch across all markets, focusing on oral versions internally.
“No, we do not. We only have capacity for the oral version. Everything else will be partnered for India and other markets.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
The global partnership for injectable GLP-1 will see its initial launch in India, with subsequent expansion into other international markets after regulatory approvals.
“For the injectable, the partnership is across all territories. The first launch is most likely going to be India, followed by other markets. We can share an update once the launch is done next quarter.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
The JB acquisition is projected to yield 400-450 crores in cost synergies over the next 2-3 years, with benefits phased in, starting with 20% in the first year.
“Our synergy target is approximately 400-450 crores over the next 2-3 years. Perhaps 20% of that could be in the first year, up to 80% in the second year, and the rest in the third year.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
Torrent aims to grow its relatively small US generics business significantly, targeting annual revenues of over $200 million next year from the current $150-160 million run rate.
“In the US, we are a very small player, doing 35-36 million a quarter. The first target I am looking to cross is 200 million per year, and hopefully, next year we will do that.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
Management anticipates substantial price erosion of 45-50% in the Brazilian GLP-1 market due to increasing competition from generic launches.
“To be safe, you can estimate at least 45-50% price erosion in the Brazilian market.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
Torrent projects a significant reduction in its net debt to EBITDA ratio post-integration, expecting it to fall to 0.6x by FY29, demonstrating a clear deleveraging path.
“For the integrated Torrent, FY28 net debt to EBITDA should be around 1-1.1x, and by FY29 it should be around 0.6x. The average cost of interest is roughly 7.6%.”
— Management Team, Company Spokesperson
Divi’s Laboratories Limited | Large Cap | Healthcare
Divi’s Laboratories Limited is a leading Indian pharmaceutical company globally manufacturing Active Pharmaceutical Ingredients (APIs), intermediates, and nutraceuticals. It primarily operates in custom synthesis for innovators and generic APIs, emphasizing strong backward integration, process efficiencies, and regulatory compliance.
[Concall]
Despite ongoing competitive pricing pressure, the generics segment experienced strong volume growth in key and emerging products.
“While the pricing environment remains competitive, we have seen a healthy volume traction in certain emerging and focused products.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Several custom synthesis projects are advancing through development and validation, with some expected to achieve commercial volumes within the next year, signaling future revenue streams.
“Multiple projects are progressing well and are at various stages of development, validation with a few moving closer to commercial volumes over the next 1 year.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Global innovators are increasingly prioritizing partners who demonstrate strong EHS performance, sustainability, and compliance alongside manufacturing capacity and reliability.
EHS (Enviornment, Health & Environment) performance in pharma ensures safety, regulatory compliance, and environmental sustainability by managing hazardous materials, worker risks, and manufacturing impacts.
“From our discussions with several MNCs, it has been clear that global innovators are effectively working with partners who prioritize on EHS performance, sustainable commitment and compliance readiness, along with their capacity and proven record of reliable execution and supply.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Unit 3 in Kakinada is critical for backward integration, enhancing supply chain robustness by producing starting materials and intermediates.
“On the manufacturing front, Unit 3 at Kakinada is playing an important role in our backward integration strategy. The operational blocks are being effectively used for starting materials and intermediates, strengthening our supply chain.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Management anticipates a stable operating environment for raw material pricing and availability over the next six months.
“Based on current visibility, we expect the operating environment over the next 6 months to remain broadly stable in terms of raw material pricing and availability.”
— Ms. Nilima Prasad Divi, Whole-Time Director (Commercial)
New labor codes in India led to a one-time exceptional financial impact of ₹ 74 crores related to revised employee benefit obligations.
“The Government of India notified the 4 labour codes on November 21, 2025, which resulted in a revision to the definition of wages. In line with this regulatory change, we have assessed a one-time incremental impact of ₹ 74 crores relating to employee benefit obligations,both during and post-employment.”
— Ms. Nilima Prasad Divi, Whole-Time Director (Commercial)
Exports remain the dominant revenue source, primarily driven by strong sales to Europe and the United States.
“Exports continue to constitute approximately 89% of the total sales revenue, with Europe and United States together contributing to 73% of the export sales.”
— Ms. Nilima Prasad Divi, Whole-Time Director (Commercial)
Custom synthesis accounts for the larger share of the product mix, indicating a continued focus on partnerships with innovator companies.
“The product mix for the quarter comprised 43% generics and 57% custom synthesis.”
— Ms. Nilima Prasad Divi, Whole-Time Director (Commercial)
Significant capital work in progress reflects substantial ongoing investments aimed at expanding capacity and strengthening backward integration.
“Capital work in progress stood at ₹ 2,394 crores as of December 31, 2025, in line with our ongoing capacity expansion and backward integration initiatives.”
— Ms. Nilima Prasad Divi, Whole-Time Director (Commercial)
Divi’s has made significant progress on GLP-1 capabilities, completing a pilot plant and a commercial building with large-scale SPPSs tailored to a specific customer’s needs.
SPPSs = Solid-Phase Peptide Synthesis systems. In simple terms, these are specialized manufacturing systems used to make peptides.
“So, on GLP-1s, okay, we have already -- like I explained last time, we have already completed construction of a pilot plant. We have also completed one of our commercial building, which has several large-scale SPPSs, which is basically designed based on one of our customers’ requirements.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
The company’s multipurpose production blocks allow for flexible and rapid deployment of new commercial projects using existing infrastructure, minimizing dedicated capital outlay.
“Most of our -- like we explained several times in the past, our production blocks are multipurpose blocks. So we can quickly use a commercial volume as and when required in the existing capacities.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Management does not anticipate any significant disruption to the company’s planned double-digit growth trajectory.
“To be -- yes, we do not foresee any disruption because -- and it’s in line with whatever our double-digit growth that we keep talking about.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
The company recognizes psoriasis as a significant current market and is actively exploring other therapeutic opportunities for its peptide chemistry.
“Psoriasis is a big market right now, and we can see going on other opportunities.”
— Dr. Kiran S. Divi, Whole-Time Director and Chief Executive Officer
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Limited | Large Cap | Healthcare
Apollo Hospitals Enterprise is a leading integrated healthcare provider in India, operating hospitals, pharmacies, and primary care clinics. The company focuses on expanding its bed capacity and enhancing its digital health platforms to serve a wide range of patient needs across its ecosystem.
[Concall]
Hospital revenue growth was a healthy mix of volume, case complexity, and effective pricing adjustments, with surgical volumes growing due to focus on complex specialties.
“This growth was driven by a well-balanced mix: 5% from volume growth, 4% from case mix, and the remaining 5% from pricing. Surgical volumes grew by 6% during the quarter, supported by our continued focus on complex specialties.”
— Sunita Reddy, Managing Director
Average revenue per patient increased sequentially, indicating a higher complexity and intensity of clinical cases being treated.
“Average revenue per patient was 1,80,917 in Q3 FY26, compared to 1,73,246 in Q2 FY26, reflecting an increase in clinical intensity during the quarter.”
— Sunita Reddy, Managing Director
Apollo HealthCo delivered substantial EBITDA growth, with the digital business achieving its lowest quarterly cash losses, signaling improved operational efficiency.
“Cumulatively, Apollo HealthCo more than doubled EBITDA to 128 crores in Q3 FY26, compared to 57 crores in Q3 FY25. Cash losses in the digital business were at 29 crores, the lowest in any quarter by far.”
— Sunita Reddy, Managing Director
The company plans significant capacity expansion by commissioning four new hospitals in major metropolitan areas in the upcoming fiscal year, indicating future growth drivers.
“As we enter the next fiscal, we will be commissioning four new hospitals, one each in Hyderabad, Kolkata, Bangalore, and Gurgaon, further strengthening our presence in key metropolitan markets with strong fundamentals ….. These facilities, along with the ramp-up in our recently commissioned Pune hospital, will add approximately 1,500 additional operating beds to our network, representing a significant step-up in capacity and a clear runway for medium-term growth.”
— Sunita Reddy, Managing Director
Continued investment in advanced hospital technology, like robotics, is yielding benefits through growth in high-end surgical procedures and improved patient outcomes.
“We have and will continue to invest ahead of the curve on in-hospital technology such as robotics, and the benefits of such investments are reaching the patient as evidenced by our growth in high-end surgeries.”
— Sunita Reddy, Managing Director
Despite some overall GMV moderation, the core online pharmacy business experienced strong 32% growth, reflecting a focus on sustainable operating models.
“Our revenue projections continue. The entire focus is on building a sustainable operating model. Our pharmacy online business, which is our mainstay of GMV, has actually grown by 32%.”
— Madivanan Balakrishnan, CEO, Apollo HealthCo
Cash EBITDA breakeven for the digital business is now projected for Q1 FY27, a one-quarter delay attributed to an insurance revenue recognition mismatch, while underlying business performance remains strong.
“Consequently, we expect cash EBITDA breakeven to move to Q1 FY27. Yes, by one quarter because of this insurance mismatch. The underlying performance is on course.”
— Madivanan Balakrishnan, CEO, Apollo HealthCo
The company prioritizes quality of revenue and Average Revenue Per Patient (ARPP) over mere volume growth, as demonstrated by strong performance in specialty care units.
“Volume by itself may not be the right indicator; we need to look at the quality of revenue and ARPP. Our Navi Mumbai unit, for example, has been performing very well on that basis with higher specialty care.”
— Dr. Madhu Sasidhar, President and CEO, Hospitals Division
Effective price realization of 5% in ARPP was driven by tariff increases, reset insurance contracts, and a favorable shift towards higher complexity cases.
ARPP = Average Revenue Per Patient
“The 3% mentioned in the presentation was the tariff increase taken during the year, while 5% is the effective price realization, as some insurance contracts were reset. The ARPP increase is a combination of higher complexity cases across oncology and surgical specialties, plus the 5% pricing realization.”
— A. Krishnan, Group CFO
Expansion in AHLL is primarily concentrated in the diagnostics segment, with new labs, collection centers, and a few new clinics.
“Most additions are in diagnostics. We also launched two new clinics, one in Chennai and one in Hyderabad. On the diagnostic side, we expanded into new labs and added collection centers within existing geographies.”
— Sriram Iyer, CEO, AHLL
The company is confident in achieving its 25,000 crore annualized revenue run rate target by Q4 FY27, based on a projected 20-22% annual growth across all business segments.
“We are currently at an annualized run rate of approximately 20,000 crores. With five quarters to go, we need to grow 25% from here. If we maintain a 20-22% annual growth across all business lines including online pharmacy, we are confident in hitting the 25,000 crore target.”
— A. Krishnan, Group CFO
Hospital revenue growth for the next year is projected at 12-14% from existing facilities, with an additional 3-4% contribution from new beds.
“We expect 12-14% growth in existing hospitals, and the additional beds should contribute another 3-4%.”
— A. Krishnan, Group CFO
The company forecasts approximately 30% full-year GMV growth on an adjusted basis for its digital platforms, excluding specific discontinued revenue streams.
“Regarding GMV, we expect approximately 30% growth for the full year on an adjusted basis, excluding Amazon and IPOP.”
— A. Krishnan, Group CFO
Narayana Hrudayalay | Mid Cap | Healthcare
Narayana Hrudayalaya Limited is a prominent Indian healthcare provider operating a chain of hospitals, heart centers, and primary care facilities. The company focuses on making high-quality healthcare accessible and affordable across various specialties including cardiac and oncology.
[Concall]
Strategic initiatives over the past two years are now yielding positive results, improving patient preferences for higher-end beds and maintaining volumes.
“We have been putting a lot of effort over the last couple of years into our transformation programs and our payer mix optimization initiatives. The effects of the transformation program are seeing results now, where patients are opting for higher bed configurations while we keep our volumes and occupancy intact.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
Technology adoption, especially in advanced procedures like robotic cardiac surgeries, is significantly boosting revenue and margins.
“Also, with several technology infusions and an increased volume of robotic cardiac surgeries and other procedures, the realizations have increased substantially, resulting in higher revenue and better margins.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
The insurance and clinic segments are in an investment phase, prioritizing customer acquisition and proposition building over immediate profitability.
“We are still in the building stage in these businesses [insurance and clinics]. Right now, our focus is on attracting customers, taking care of them, and building out the various propositions. It is a little early for us to talk about break-even on this.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
Advanced technological procedures like robotic surgeries are contributing to significant improvements in both margins and patient volumes.
“Additionally, high-end robotic work, aided by technology across all specialties including cardiac surgeries, has significantly improved our margins and volumes.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
The company’s strategy to consolidate domestic volumes and revenues has successfully led to improved performance across key metrics in the Bangalore cluster.
“Our full emphasis going forward will be to consolidate domestic volumes and revenues. That is exactly what we have been doing over the last six quarters, and all these factors together have improved our volumes, margins, realizations, and revenues this quarter on a year-over-year basis for the Bangalore cluster.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
The successful strategies implemented in Bangalore will be replicated across other clusters, indicating a standardized approach to margin and realization improvement.
“This is the same template we are going to follow for all our clusters, including the Eastern cluster. They are following suit in terms of margins and realizations because these are the two major clusters where our flagships are located. We will continue toward the same objective in the North cluster as well.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
Northern cluster growth was temporarily soft due to increased competition, but management expects to mitigate this within one or two quarters through strategic actions.
“Increased competition from nearby hospitals in the North also contributed to a bit of a shortfall, but we are confident of overcoming this through our active marketing and operational strategies. This is time-bound, and I do not think this problem will persist beyond a quarter or two.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
Bangalore’s significantly higher ARPOB is driven by its high volume of advanced procedures like robotic cardiac surgeries and bone marrow transplants, which command higher realizations.
“You are seeing these types of numbers because of robotic cardiac surgery and bone marrow transplants; these are very large numbers here. In the last few quarters, we have performed the largest volume of robotic cardiac surgery in the country, largely from our Bangalore unit.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
While new competition may increase short-term costs, the long-term impact is expected to normalize due to unmet demand and low awareness in the broader market.
“Competition has a definite short-term impact in terms of enhanced costs and time to break even, but it evens out long-term because organized corporate hospitals are still barely able to service the true demand. Not everyone gets treated for the procedures they require, and awareness remains an issue.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
Oncology and cardiac specialties are projected to collectively contribute over half of future revenues, with oncology showing significant growth potential.
“We believe oncology and cardiac will account for more than half of our revenue going forward. Cardiac, at one-third, will remain our largest department, and oncology could eventually go up another 20% in the years ahead.”
— Company Management, Executive Team
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Quotes in this newsletter were curated by Kashish, Meher & Vignesh.
Disclaimer: We’ve used AI tools in filtering and cleaning up these quotes so there maybe some mistakes. Now, if you are thinking why we are using AI, please remember that we are just a small team of 5 people running everything you see on Zerodha Markets 😬 So, all the good stuff is human and mistakes are AI.
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