Hubtown Ltd: 1,788 Working Capital Days, ₹160 Cr Other Income – India’s Most Creative Accountant?
1. At a Glance
Hubtown Ltd is the real estate developer that’s been around since 1985 — but only recently figured out how to turn profit… mostly via “other income”. Its Q1 FY26 net profit? ₹82 Cr. Main operating income? ₹187 Cr. So where did the profits come from? Hint: not from selling flats. With 271 debtor days and working capital cycles longer than some political terms, this ₹4,721 Cr market-cap entity is an accounting enigma dressed as a builder.
2. Introduction
Hubtown is that friend who owes you ₹500 for three years but just bought a new iPhone. On paper, they’re in the real estate business — residential and commercial projects across Mumbai, Pune, Surat, and other urban jungles. But dive deeper, and you’ll find quarterly profits that magically appear (thanks, other income), shrinking promoter holding, and a working capital cycle so long it could pass for a startup’s Series Z funding round. Still, the stock’s up 100%+ in the last year, and Q1 FY26 profit looks juicy. What gives? One word: financial alchemistry.
3. Business Model (WTF Do They Even Do?)
Hubtown develops real estate — at least that’s what it claims. Revenue comes from:
Residential Sales
Commercial Developments
JV/Associate Project Revenues
And… apparently sorcery called ‘Other Income’ They don’t hold big land banks or rental assets. Their model is EPC + JDA-based real estate execution with many subsidiaries/JVs. But with high debtor days and minimal operating cash flow, the cash seems to prefer realtors over real estate.
4. Financials Overview
Here’s what the numbers say (or hide):
TTM Revenue: ₹476 Cr
TTM PAT: ₹124 Cr
TTM Other Income: ₹160 Cr (Yes, more than PAT)
EPS (TTM): ₹9.01
P/E (at ₹349): 38.7
ROE: 2.5%
Debtor Days: 271
Working Capital Days: 1,788 (!!) This is the kind of company that doesn’t build real estate — it builds balance sheet suspense novels.
5. Valuation (Fair Value RANGE only)
Method
Assumptions
Value (₹)
P/E Multiple
Real estate sector avg ~25×, EPS ₹9.01
180 – 225
EV/EBITDA
EBITDA ₹143 Cr, Multiple 10×
170 – 220
DCF
8% growth, 14% discount rate
160 – 200
Fair Value Range: ₹160 – ₹225 This FV range is for educational purposes only and is not investment advice.
