1. At a Glance – The “Old Uncle Still Lifting Weights” Stock
Kirloskar Pneumatic is that 65-year-old industrial uncle who wakes up at 5 AM, lifts weights, eats protein, and still scares younger competitors.
As of today, the company sits at a market cap of ₹6,882 Cr, trades near ₹1,060, and has corrected ~18.5% in the last 6 months, politely reminding momentum traders that capital goods is not crypto.
Q3 FY26 numbers were solid but not orgasmic:
- Revenue: ₹403 Cr (+18.8% YoY)
- PAT: ₹42.2 Cr (+15.9% YoY)
- Operating Margin: ~15%
- Debt: A laughable ₹8.7 Cr
- Debt-to-Equity: 0.01 (basically debt-free)
And yet…
- P/E: 35×
- P/B: 6×
- EV/EBITDA: 23.6×
So the obvious question:
👉 Is this a premium engineering compounder… or just an expensive legacy brand with good PR?
2. Introduction – A Compressor Company That Accidentally Became a Logistics Player
Founded in 1958, Kirloskar Pneumatic (KPCL) belongs to the Kirloskar industrial mafia—the good kind. The company plays across Compression, Transmission, and a weirdly interesting RoadRailer logistics business.
It supplies compressors to Oil & Gas, Steel, Cement, Food & Beverages, Railways, Marine, and basically any industry that needs air, gas, pressure, or refrigeration.
What makes KPCL interesting is not growth hype—it’s market dominance:
- >60% market share in CNG systems & oil-gas refrigeration in India
- 70% share in ammonia refrigeration compressors
- World’s largest industrial gas compressor manufacturer (as per company disclosures)
This is not a
“startup story”.
This is a moat story.
But moats don’t automatically justify 35× earnings, right?
3. Business Model – WTF Do They Even Do? (Explained Like You’re Lazy but Smart)
Kirloskar Pneumatic earns money from three main buckets:
1️⃣ Compression Systems (90% of 9M FY25 revenue)
This is the cash cow:
- Industrial air compressors
- Refrigeration & cryogenic systems
- Process gas systems
Used in refineries, LNG, fertilizer plants, steel mills—basically places where failure = explosion.
High entry barriers.
High switching costs.
Engineers don’t experiment here.
2️⃣ Transmission Systems
Gears and gearboxes supplied to:
- Railways
- Cement
- Power & Steel
Not sexy, but stable.
3️⃣ RoadRailer – The “Why Is This Here?” Segment
India’s first bi-modal Road–Rail logistics system, running factory-to-warehouse between Chennai and Delhi.
This is:
- Asset-heavy
- Slow growing
- Strategically interesting
But not the valuation driver.
👉 Question for you: Should KPCL spin this off someday or keep the optionality?
4. Financials Overview – Q3 FY26
Quarterly Comparison Table (₹ Cr)
| Metric | Latest Qtr (Dec-25) | YoY Qtr | Prev Qtr | YoY % | QoQ % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | 407 | 343 | 386 | 18.8% | 5.4% |
| EBITDA | 61 | 49 | 58 | 24.5% | 5.2% |
| PAT | 42 | 37 | 44 | 15.9% | -4.5% |
| EPS (₹) | 6.50 | 5.61 | 6.70 | 15.9% | -3.0% |
