1. At a Glance – The Heavy Metal Underdog
Small-cap alert. Market cap: ₹135 Cr. Current price: ₹59.2. Down 17.3% in 3 months. High of ₹111, low of ₹39. Welcome to the rollercoaster.
Expo Engineering & Projects Ltd is trading at a P/E of 34, Price-to-Book of 3.44, ROCE of 12.8%, ROE of 12%, and Debt-to-Equity of 0.82. TTM Sales: ₹90.78 Cr. TTM PAT: ₹3.97 Cr. EPS: ₹1.74.
Latest Q3 FY26 numbers?
Revenue: ₹18.10 Cr (down 28.5% YoY).
PAT: ₹0.51 Cr (down 23.9% YoY).
But wait — 9M FY26 PAT up 48.7% YoY to ₹2.40 Cr and EBITDA margins expanded 402 bps to 10.67%.
So which is it? Growth story or cyclical headache?
With ₹114.63 Cr order book (almost 85% of market cap), fresh PSU wins from IOCL and BPCL, and ₹22.02 Cr preferential warrant raise, this 1982-born fabricator is trying to act like it’s 2025 startup energy.
But can a heavy engineering company with debtor days rising to 65 actually accelerate?
Let’s dig.
2. Introduction – From LPG Cylinders to IOC Contracts
Expo Engineering began in 1982 manufacturing LPG cylinders. Policy changes hit. Business pivoted. Enter heavy engineering.
Today, this Mumbai-based company manufactures high-pressure vessels, storage tanks, heat exchangers, reactors, and executes on-site engineering projects.
Basically, if oil & gas companies need giant metal things that don’t explode, Expo tries to build them.
The journey hasn’t been smooth:
- Execution delays in early 2000s
- ₹40 Cr IOCL Panipat exit
- Debt ballooning
- One-Time Settlement in 2009
That’s not a startup story. That’s a survival documentary.
Fast forward to FY25:
Revenue: ₹114.74 Cr
PAT: ₹3.18 Cr
EPS: ₹1.37
And in FY26, they’ve already reported 9M revenue of ₹50.94 Cr and PAT ₹2.40 Cr.
The management has raised ₹22.02 Cr via preferential warrants (25% upfront received). Promoters and investors are putting skin in the game.
Question: Is this turnaround sustainable or just order-cycle timing magic?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do?
Let’s simplify.
They operate in three segments:
1) Process Plant Equipment Manufacturing
- High-pressure vessels
- Heat exchangers
- Reactors
- Columns
- Custom-built fabrications
Translation: Big cylindrical metal things that handle oil, gas, chemicals
