Welspun Investments & Commercials Ltd (WICL) looks like that rich uncle who owns property worth ₹493 Cr but still shows up to weddings in a Maruti 800. Market cap? ₹325 Cr. Book value? ₹1,995 per share. CMP? ₹939. Basically, it’s on discount sale at Flipkart, but someone forgot to tell Dalal Street.
2. Introduction
Born in 2008, WICL is the Welspun Group’s “Core Investment Company.” Sounds serious, right? In reality, it’s a glorified holding firm with no factories, no smokestacks, no cranes—just a fat portfolio of shares in Welspun Line Pipes, Steel, Infra, and Energy businesses.
Here’s the catch: 97% of its revenue in FY23 came from dividends. So, the company’s annual report could honestly be one page: “We got dividend. We lived. Shubh Ratri.” The rest—interest income and fair value gains—are garnish for SEBI compliance.
And while investors scream about “high growth,” WICL calmly sits with an ROE of 0.62%. That’s lower than the fixed deposit interest you get from your neighborhood co-operative bank. Yet, the stock trades at a P/E of 93. Why? Because desi markets love family surnames, and “Welspun” has the brand aura.
Question: If you had to pick between Welspun making pipes for oil & gas vs. Welspun holding shares of pipe-makers, which one would you choose?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
WICL’s business model is simpler than a Maggi recipe:
Step 1: Hold Welspun group shares.
Step 2: Collect dividends.
Step 3: Pray for stock prices to rise.
Step 4: Call it “investment strategy.”
Officially, they also dabble in trading textile products and commodities. But let’s be real: if 97% of income is dividend, textiles are just there to make the annual report less boring.
In other words, WICL is like that friend who tells everyone he’s into “trading” but is actually just checking Zerodha for IPO allotments.
4. Financials Overview
Metric
Latest Qtr (Jun’25)
YoY Qtr (Jun’24)
Prev Qtr (Mar’25)
YoY %
QoQ %
Revenue
0.04 Cr
0.11 Cr
0.06 Cr
-63.6%
-33.3%
EBITDA
-0.20 Cr
0.04 Cr
-0.03 Cr
-600%
-566%
PAT
-0.20 Cr
0.02 Cr
0.00 Cr
-1,100%
—
EPS (₹)
-0.55
0.05
0.00
—
—
Commentary: Quarterly results look like random decimals from a calculator. Negative PAT, EPS in minus, yet stock still enjoys the 90x+ P/E membership club. Dalal Street logic: “If it makes no sense, it must be premium.”
5. Valuation – Fair Value Range Only
P/E Method: EPS TTM = ₹9.52. Industry PE ~32. Reasonable range: 20x–30x. → Fair Value = ₹190 – ₹285.
P/B Method: Book Value = ₹1,995, CMP = 0.47x BV. Even if re-rated at 0.8–1.0x BV → Fair Value = ₹1,600 – ₹2,000.
Investment Value: Portfolio worth ₹493 Cr vs. market cap ₹325 Cr. On a per-share basis, ~₹1,420 intrinsic.
Blended Fair Value Range = ₹285 – ₹1,600.
Disclaimer: This range is for educational purposes only and not investment advice.
6. What’s Cooking – News, Triggers, Drama
New Brand Identity: In July 2023, Welspun launched “Welspun World.” Because nothing says shareholder value like new logos.
Portfolio Play: Market cap < value of investments. So technically, it’s a “holding discount.”
Dividend Drama: Despite earning almost entirely from dividends, WICL doesn’t pay out dividends itself. Classic desi joint family move—parents take pension but
