01 — At a Glance
The Conductor Kingpin Who Just Refused to Break
- 52-Week High / Low₹11,648 / ₹4,270
- Q3 FY26 Revenue₹5,480 Cr
- Q3 FY26 PAT₹227 Cr
- Q3 FY26 EPS₹52.01
- Annualised EPS (Q3×4)₹208
- Book Value₹1,208
- Price to Book8.60x
- Dividend Yield0.49%
- Debt / Equity0.14x
- 9M FY26 PAT (All-time high)₹723 Cr
The Quick Take: APAR just delivered the highest 9-month PAT in company history (₹723 Cr, +26.6% YoY). Revenue for 9M FY26 hit ₹16,299 Cr (+22% YoY). But here’s the twist: exports collapsed 11% in Q3, U.S. tariffs are brutal, and the stock trades at 42.1x P/E — the fattest premium in the conductor/cables/oils peer set. The business is real. The growth is real. The valuation? That’s a conversation waiting to happen.
02 — Introduction
Three Businesses in a Trench Coat, Pretending to Be One
Founded in 1958 by Dharmsinh D. Desai, APAR is the world’s largest manufacturer of conductors (the aluminum/copper wires that carry electricity across power lines). They also make transformer oils (60% market share in India, 3rd largest globally). And cables — specialty, telecom, renewable, railway, defence, submarine. Three completely different businesses. One revenue envelope. Three completely different economics.
The conductor division is royalty on national power distribution expansion. The oils division has pricing power in transformer manufacturers who choose quality over cost. The cables division is feast-or-famine project work — and right now they’re feasting in India but starving in the U.S. due to 54% tariffs.
Market cap ₹41,751 crore. That’s higher than established mid-cap industrials trading at single-digit P/Es. The stock has returned 70% in one year, 88% in 5 years. For a company making aluminum wire, that’s aggressive. For a company whose management just declared FY27 “will see normalization in conductor volumes,” that might be priced for utopia.
Let’s break down what’s real, what’s speculation, and what’s the consequence of a tariff expansion that Congress decided to throw at the world in January 2025.
Management’s Feb 2026 Concall Language: “Quite strategic market” (about the U.S.). “Continue servicing even at slightly lower margin” (about export pricing). “Optimistic in delivering guidance” (about FY26). Translation: we’re taking short-term pain to preserve long-term position, and yes, tariffs suck.
03 — Business Model: One Company. Three Gambles.
Conductors. Oils. Cables. Pick One.
APAR operates three business segments that contribute almost equally to revenue:
Conductors (48% of FY25 revenue): Manufacturing overhead transmission conductors in variants like ACSR (aluminum conductor steel reinforced), AL-59 (ultra-efficient high-temp aluminum alloy), and HTLS (high-temperature low-sag). Installed capacity: 444,607 MT. Think of it as a monopoly on the asset that moves 100% of India’s power grid. They export to 140 countries, but U.S. is 32% of export order book and now poisoned by tariffs. Order book strong at ₹7,396 Cr for the conductor division alone.
Transformer & Specialty Oils (26% of FY25): Over 500 variants of transformer oil, white oils, petroleum jelly, industrial lubricants. Installed capacity: 861,600 KL. They supply major transformer OEMs globally and have an ENI (Italian energy giant) joint venture for automotive lubricants under POWEROIL brand. Volume growth at double digits, but FX headwinds hurt unit economics in Q3. Unit EBITDA fell to ₹5,331 per KL from ₹6,364 LY.
Cables & Harnesses (25% of FY25): Specialty electrical cables for railways (Vande Bharat trains), naval ships, renewables (wind/solar), telecom, defense. This division just won an INR 156-crore railways Kavach telecom contract (22–24 month execution). Domestic cables surged +34.6% YoY in Q3, but U.S. exports crashed -65% YoY due to tariffs. Domestic order book ₹1,700 Cr.
Conductors48%FY25 Mix
Oils & Lubricants26%FY25 Mix
Cables25%FY25 Mix
Export Situation (Reality Check): APAR is 67% domestic, 33% export in 9M FY26. But that’s the aggregate. Conductors are 18% export (vs 25% LY), oils are 42% export, cables are 34% export. The tariff damage is concentrated in conductors (especially U.S.) and cables (absolutely U.S.). Oils exports are healthier. This asymmetry matters.
04 — Financials Overview: The Numbers Don’t Lie. The Headlines Do.
Q3 FY26: Quarterly Results
Result type: Quarterly Results | Q3 FY26 EPS: ₹52.01 | Annualised EPS (Q3×4): ₹208.04 | P/E at CMP: 42.1x (₹10,394 ÷ ₹242 TTM EPS)
| Metric (₹ Cr) |
Q3 FY26
Dec 2025 |
Q3 FY25
Dec 2024 |
Q2 FY26
Sep 2025 |
YoY % |
QoQ % |
| Revenue | 5,480 | 4,716 | 5,715 | +16.2% | -4.1% |
| Operating Profit (EBITDA) | 483 | 401 | 465 | +20.4% | +3.9% |
| OPM % | 8.8% | 8.5% | 8.1% | +30 bps | +70 bps |
| PAT | 227 | 189 | 252 | +19.4% | -10.1% |
| EPS (₹) | 52.01 | 43.55 | 62.66 | +19.4% | -17.0% |
The Fine Print: 9M FY26 numbers are the real story. Revenue ₹16,299 Cr (+22% YoY). PAT ₹723 Cr (+26.6% YoY, including a one-off ₹25 Cr gratuity exception). Annualised EPS from 9M ÷ 3 × 4 = ₹96.4 Cr / share. But Q3 was softer than Q2, mostly because U.S. export orders froze in September (DDP model means 60–70 day order-to-revenue lag), and ROW delays hit conductor execution timing. Management still expects Q4 recovery as order inflow rebounds.
05 — Valuation: The Uncomfortable Conversation
What’s the Fair Price for a ₹41,751 Cr Company Growing at 22%?
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