1. At a Glance – Blink and You’ll Miss the Cash Machine
₹29,000 crore market cap. ₹150 unit price. Dividend yield of ~4.8%. EV north of ₹48,000 crore. And operating margins so high (99%) that even SaaS founders feel insecure.
National Highways Infra Trust (NHIT) is what happens when India’s highways grow up, put on a tie, and start distributing cash every quarter like a disciplined PSU uncle. Q2 FY26 delivered ₹1,259 Cr in revenue (+63.5% YoY) and ₹848 Cr PAT (+63.6% YoY). No drama, no surprises, just toll booths quietly minting money while you’re stuck at one paying FASTag charges.
Debt stands at ~₹21,900 Cr, DSCR at a comfortable 2.16x, credit rating at AAA/Stable, and sponsor risk? Zero—because the sponsor is literally the Government of India.
This is not a “story stock”. This is a spreadsheet stock. And spreadsheets, dear reader, don’t lie—unless Excel crashes.
So the real question: is NHIT boring… or beautifully boring?
2. Introduction – When Highways Become Financial Products
Once upon a time, highways were just roads. Then came tolls. Then FASTag. And now? They’re listed, leveraged, distributed, and tracked by analysts like FMCG companies. Welcome to the age of InvITs.
NHIT was listed in November 2021, backed by the National Highways Authority of India (NHAI), which itself is 100% owned by the Government of India. That already tells you this isn’t some promoter waking up with “infrastructure vision” after a Goa trip.
NHIT’s job is simple:
- Acquire revenue-generating national highways from NHAI
- Operate them through SPVs under 20–30 year concessions
- Collect tolls
- Pay interest, repay debt, and distribute the rest to unitholders
No land acquisition risk. No construction headaches. No “approval stuck in ministry” nightmares. Those risks are already eaten by the government before assets come to NHIT.
Think of NHIT as India’s highway monetisation engine—where roads stop being political promises and start becoming cash-flow instruments.
But simplicity doesn’t mean risk-free. Traffic growth, policy changes, leverage, and distribution sustainability still matter. So let’s open the bonnet.
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
NHIT doesn’t build roads. NHIT doesn’t widen roads.
NHIT doesn’t argue with contractors on cement prices.
NHIT buys already-operational highways from NHAI and runs them like a landlord runs rental apartments—except tenants are trucks, buses, and impatient car owners.
The Structure (a.k.a. Government Origami)
- Sponsor: NHAI
- Investment Manager: NHIIMPL
- Project Manager: NHIPMPL (100% NHAI-owned)
- Assets held via SPVs under long-term concession agreements
Three Core SPVs
- NWPPL (West – Rounds 1 & 2): Q2 FY26 revenue ₹265 Cr
- NEPPL (East – Round 3 / Leap): Q2 FY26 revenue ₹349 Cr
- NSPPL (South – Round 4 / Ascent): Q2 FY26 revenue ₹388 Cr
Round 4 assets were appointed only from April 1, 2025—and they’re already contributing meaningfully. That’s like buying a cow and getting milk from day one.
Assets are spread across 2,345 km, 26 projects, 11 states, and 41 toll plazas, including premium corridors like Golden Quadrilateral and North–South/East–West routes.
Translation: diversification, economic relevance, and long concession life. No single state tantrum can derail the trust.
4. Financials Overview – Numbers That Don’t Sweat
Quarterly Comparison (₹ Crore, Standalone)
| Metric | Latest Q2 FY26 | Q2 FY25 | Q1 FY26 | YoY % | QoQ % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 1,259 | 770 | 1,268 | +63.5% | -0.7% |
| Operating Profit | 1,251 | 763 | 1,259 | +63.9% | -0.6% |
| PAT | 848 | 518 | 835 | +63.6% | +1.6% |
| EPS (₹) | 4.38 | 3.95 | 4.31 | +10.9% | +1.6% |
Operating margin? 99%.
Expense line? Basically pocket change.
Tax rate? ~0–1%, because infrastructure accounting is a different universe.
This isn’t operational leverage. This is structural leverage.
Ask yourself: how many businesses do you know where revenue goes up and costs shrug?
