Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd

Price story Before the numbers, the tape. A stock price moves through four repeating seasons: a flat base (stage 1), an advance (2), a top (3), a decline (4). Where the price sits in that cycle frames everything below.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd trades at ₹172, in a downtrend and 1 weeks into that stage. That is −11.3% against its own 200-day average. It sits at 19% of a 52-week range of ₹154 to ₹251. On relative strength it is currently behind the NIFTY 500 on a trailing-13-week view (15 weeks and counting).

Today the stock is in a downtrend — week 1 of stage 4, confirmed. At ₹172 it trades −11.3% versus its 200-day average and sits at 19% of its 52-week range (₹154–₹251).

Against the market, two honest reads. Cumulative: over the last 10.4 years the stock moved +299% while the NIFTY 500 moved +242% — ahead of the index over the full window. Recent form: on a trailing-13-week view the stock is currently behind (15 weeks and counting; last ahead the week of 2026-06-17) — the ribbon below is that same metric, week by week.

What would end the trend, mechanically: two Friday closes in a row below the 200-day line. That is the exit rule — no debates.

Story check

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd's story is not scored yet against the markers our research file set on 17 May 2026. Where it sits in its own cycle: MID_CONTRACTION.

Our read, 17 May 2026. A commodity wire-rope maker transitioning to a specialty manufacturer — value-added mix and US market gains are real, but 51% promoter pledge caps conviction until resolved, and October 2025 subsidy expiry is now a live earnings test.

From the numbers. PE at 38th percentile (15.7x vs 16.6x 10Y median). Peak was 24.5x (Dec 2023). Current INFLECTION_UP yoy trend suggests earnings re-acceleration is beginning. FII buying is a positive institutional signal.…

From the price. Price stage 4, week 1 — below its 200-day line, relative strength falling.

From the research. A commodity wire-rope maker transitioning to a specialty manufacturer — value-added mix and US market gains are real, but 51% promoter pledge caps conviction until resolved, and October 2025 subsidy expiry is now a live…

🚨 Where they disagree. PE at 38th percentile (15.7x vs 16.6x 10Y median). Peak was 24.5x (Dec 2023). Current INFLECTION_UP yoy trend suggests earnings re-acceleration is beginning. FII buying is a positive institutional signal. MID_CONTRACTION phase means the PE has not yet troughed — there is potential for further compression before expansion if post-subsidy earnings disappoint, but the INFLECTION_UP trend and FII buying are encouraging.

What is proven. A commodity wire-rope maker transitioning to a specialty manufacturer — value-added mix and US market gains are real, but 51% promoter pledge caps conviction until resolved, and October 2025 subsidy expiry is now a live earnings test.

What is not proven yet. 51% of promoter holdings are pledged — in any negative stock event (operator activity, earnings miss, credit downgrade), forced selling by pledgees can create a sentiment collapse with no management buffer.

The test written in advance. Promoter pledge at 51% of holding — governance and forced-sale risk — Promoter pledge at 51% of holding — governance and forced-sale risk Promoter pledge % in quarterly shareholding disclosures by the next result.

The test written in advance. Subsidy expiry confirmed October 2025 — post-expiry OPM test now live — Subsidy expiry confirmed October 2025 — post-expiry OPM test now live FY26 OPM and PAT margin — first two post-expiry quarters are the acid test by the next result.

The test written in advance. Working capital elongation — 140-154 days cash conversion cycle — Working capital elongation — 140-154 days cash conversion cycle Cash conversion days in annual results; trade receivables trend by the next result.

What the company does. FY24 delivered revenue ₹622 Cr (+6% YoY), EBITDA ₹164 Cr (+18%), PAT ₹96 Cr (+55%), OPM 26.39% (+283 bps) — margin-led profit compounding on a stable-volume base. PE at 38th percentile (15.7x vs 16.6x median), INFLECTION_UP trend — earnings are re-accelerating after the FY22→FY23 re-rating; multiple has not yet followed. Subsidy runway (₹435 Cr total eligibility) expired October 2025 — the post-subsidy OPM test is now live; US market share rising from 8% to 13% and debottlenecking to 80-85% provide the structural offset thesis.

Lever 2 · Value-added mix — BUILDING. Shifting from commodity wire ropes to elevator ropes, compacted ropes, high-zinc coated ropes (currently 10-15% of mix, target 20%+) — realizations 30%+ higher than standard products, with materially better EBITDA per ton. What proves it keeps working: Value-Added Product Mix Shift. It stops working if Promoter pledge % in quarterly shareholding disclosures.

Lever 10 · New geographies — BUILDING. US revenue share risen from 8% to 13% despite initial tariff-driven buyer caution — product quality acceptance confirmed in the world's most demanding wire rope market. What proves it keeps working: US Market Penetration (8% → 13% revenue share). It stops working if Promoter pledge % in quarterly shareholding disclosures.

Lever 7 · Consolidation — BUILDING. D/E below 0.2, long-term debt repayment from cash flows (₹60 Cr repaid Sep 2022-Sep 2023), interest costs approximately 3% of turnover — each ₹10 Cr reduction in interest flows directly to PAT. What proves it keeps working: Debt Reduction and Interest Cost Deleveraging. It stops working if Promoter pledge % in quarterly shareholding disclosures.

Lever 8 · Demerger or value unlock — BUILDING. ₹435 Cr total eligibility subsidy expired October 2025 — post-expiry OPM test is now live; management asserted EBITDA sustainable at 10% without subsidy. What proves it keeps working: Industrial Promotion Subsidy (Maharashtra PSI — EXPIRED Oct 2025). It stops working if Promoter pledge % in quarterly shareholding disclosures.

Sources: our stock research file (17 May 2026) · quarterly results through Jun 26. The story check is re-scored every results season; the record below never changes.

Revenue Revenue is the top line: everything the company billed its customers in the period.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd reported ₹130 Cr of revenue in the Jun 26 quarter, −8.5% year on year. Over 10 years it has compounded at 25.5% a year. The last full year, FY26, came in at ₹591 Cr. The last four reported quarters add to ₹579 Cr.

Why this happened. The US market gain is qualitatively significant because it demonstrates actual customer wins against established Korean and Turkish competition. Management noted US buyers were initially cautious after tariff imposition, but acceptance improved as product quality was validated. With 200+ customers globally (top 5 under 20% concentration) and current exports to 50-55 countries with a target of 80-85, the US is the bellwether geography for quality validation. Each percentage point of US mix improvement flows to higher overall blended realization.

FY26 revenue came in at ₹591 Cr (−4.5% on the year), capping 10 years at 25.5% compound. The latest quarter (Jun 26) printed ₹130 Cr, −8.5% year on year.

Pace check: the last four quarters averaged −7.4% growth against the decade's 25.5% — the current year is running slower than its own long-run rate.

Acceleration check: trailing-twelve-month revenue grew −7.8% over the last 4 quarters against −1.4%/yr over the last 8 — rolling over; TTM profit −4.2% vs −13.1%/yr — accelerating.

Operating margin Operating margin is what is left of every ₹100 of sales after running the business, before interest and tax. It is the cleanest read on pricing power and cost control.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd's operating margin is 20.0% in the Jun 26 quarter, −1.0 percentage points against the same quarter a year ago. Across 12 fiscal years the operating margin has ranged 8.0% to 26.0%. The current quarter sits inside that band.

Why this happened. The single most durable structural driver. Management consistently articulated across all 4 concalls (Q1-Q4 FY24) the strategy of increasing value-added product share from the current 10-15% toward 20%+. Value-added products carry at least 30% higher realization versus commodity wire ropes, and some specialty products reach ₹500-600/kg. At ₹40,000 EBITDA per ton (Q1 FY24), this is the primary lever to expand OPM beyond the current 26% ceiling. The FY24 margin expansion of 283 bps was partly driven by this mix shift alongside raw material and power cost reduction.

The latest quarter's operating margin is 20.0%, −1.0 pp against the same quarter a year ago. Across 12 fiscal years the operating margin has ranged 8.0%–26.0%.

🚨 Why the margin moved: operating margin went −1.7 pp year on year while gross margin went +3.1 pp — the loss came mostly from the gross line: input costs and pricing.

Net profit Net profit is what survives every cost, interest and tax — the number EPS, dividends and book value all grow from.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd earned ₹12.0 Cr of net profit in the Jun 26 quarter, −25.0% year on year. Full-year FY26 profit was ₹72.0 Cr. The 10-year compound rate is 53.4%. That is 9.2% of the quarter's revenue. The same quarter a year earlier earned ₹16.0 Cr.

Jun 26 profit was ₹12.0 Cr, −25.0% year on year. On the full year, FY26 printed ₹72.0 Cr (+0.0%), and the 10-year compound rate is 53.4%.

🚨 Why profit moved: revenue contributed −8.5% and the margin −1.0 pp — the quarter was revenue-led, with the margin roughly flat.

Pace comparison, last four quarters: profit −3.3% vs revenue −7.4%. Profit is growing faster than sales — fixed costs are being spread over a bigger base, and each extra rupee of revenue drops more to the bottom line.

Cash flow — the router The P&L says what was earned; the cash-flow statement says what actually arrived. Operating cash flow (CFO) against profit is the cleanest lie detector in the accounts.

Over the last 3 fiscal years 107% of Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd's reported profit arrived as operating cash — the cash follows the profit. In FY26 that was ₹98.0 Cr of operating cash against ₹72.0 Cr of profit. After ₹32.0 Cr of capital spending, ₹66.0 Cr was left as free cash.

FY26: operating cash of ₹98.0 Cr against reported profit of ₹72.0 Cr, leaving free cash of ₹66.0 Cr after ₹32.0 Cr of capital spending. Across the last 3 fiscal years the conversion rate is 107% of profit.

Cash-flow readings here are annual — that is the resolution our series carries, so this section moves once a year.

Why conversion sits at 107%: the cash cycle stretched 12 days between FY21 and FY26 — more of each rupee of profit waits inside the cycle before arriving.

Router verdict: the bigger cash user is investment — capital spending ran 1.8× depreciation over three years, so the next section's job is to check what that build-out is buying.

Where the cash goes Working capital is the cash tied up between paying suppliers and getting paid: debtor days (customers owe), inventory days (stock waits), and the cash conversion cycle (the whole loop, in days of sales).

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd's cash conversion cycle runs 188 days in FY26, up from 176 days in FY21. Capital spending ran ₹122 Cr over the last 3 years. At FY26 sales of ₹591 Cr each day of that cycle holds about ₹1.6 Cr, so roughly ₹304 Cr sits inside the business at any moment.

FY26: debtors at 60 days, inventory at 140 days — roughly 4.6 months of stock waiting to sell; that is where the cash sits while it waits — for a full cycle of 188 days, looser than FY21's 176.

The full loop: cash goes out to suppliers and production on day 0; stock waits 140 days to sell; customers pay about 60 days after that; and suppliers themselves are paid at 12 days — netting out to the 188-day cycle.

In money terms: at FY26 sales of ₹591 Cr, each day of the cycle holds about ₹1.6 Cr — so the 188-day loop keeps roughly ₹304 Cr sitting inside the business at any moment.

On the investment side: capital spending of ₹122 Cr over the last 3 fiscal years against ₹67.0 Cr of depreciation — the company is building well ahead of wear-and-tear. Capital work-in-progress stands at ₹4.0 Cr (FY26) — capacity paid for but not yet earning.

The synthesis: the cash is going into capacity, not disappearing into the cycle — the question becomes whether the new capacity earns.

Return on capital Return on capital employed (ROCE) is the profit the whole business earns on all the money in it — equity and debt together. It is the single best test of whether growth creates value or just size.⚠ unverified

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd earns a ROCE of 12% in FY26. That is up from a trough of 0% in FY19. Return on invested capital clears the cost of that capital by −2.8 percentage points, so growth here is not yet paying for the capital it uses. The wiring behind it is 12.2% net margin on 0.60× asset turns.

FY26 ROCE is 12%, recovered from a FY19 trough of 0% — the full ladder below shows the fall and the climb, undoctored.

🚨 Why the return is what it is — the wiring (FY26): 12.2% net margin × 0.60× asset turns × 2.31× balance-sheet leverage ≈ 16.9% on equity. Margin does its share; leverage is a meaningful part of the equation.

The capstone test — ROIC − WACC: 9.2% − 12.0% = a −2.8 pp spread. The 12.0% is a standing assumption for the cost of capital in India, not a per-stock estimate — read the sign and the size of the spread, not the decimals. Negative — growth at these returns destroys value until the returns recover.

Debt Debt-to-equity says how much of the business is funded by borrowings. Low is the safe corner; the trend matters as much as the level.⚠ unverified

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd carries total debt of ₹75.0 Cr against shareholder equity of ₹811 Cr as of Mar 26, a debt-to-equity of 0.09 — effectively unlevered. On the annual view that ratio went from 0.60 in FY22 to 0.09 in FY26. The returns elsewhere on this page are therefore earned rather than borrowed.

Mar 26: total debt of ₹75.0 Cr against shareholder equity of ₹811 Cr — a debt-to-equity of 0.09. On the annual view, debt-to-equity went from 0.60 (FY22) to 0.09 (FY26). The returns on this page are earned, not borrowed.

Ownership Who owns the stock, quarter by quarter: promoters (the controlling owners), foreign and domestic institutions, and the public. Steady accumulation by people close to the numbers is a signal; a quiet register is also an answer.

Domestic institutions added 16.4 points of Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd over 8 quarters, the biggest move on the register. That takes domestic institutions to 19.0% of the company. Foreign institutions moved −1.0 points over the same window, to 2.1%. The register is read on the four disclosed classes only; nothing is inferred between filings.

The register over the last two years — Domestic institutions: +16.4 points over 8 quarters to 19.0%; Foreign institutions: −1.0 points over 8 quarters to 2.1%; Promoters: +0.3 points over 8 quarters to 41.3%.

Why the register moved: domestic institutions drove it (+16.4 points), absorbed on the other side by foreign institutions (−1.0 points) — steady accumulation by institutions reading the same numbers this page reads.

Safety line The Z-score estimates how far a company sits from balance-sheet distress — above roughly 3 is safe, below roughly 1.8 is the danger zone. It was built for manufacturers, so it is not applied to banks and lenders.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd: the Z-score is not available for this stock, so we say so rather than invent one. It is a distance-to-distress estimate from the balance sheet, not a forecast of failure. The debt, cash-flow and return sections above carry the balance-sheet evidence this page does hold, and each of them states its own reporting date.

The safety line in one sentence: the Z-score is not available for this stock, so we say so rather than invent one.

Valuation P/E is the price of ₹1 of annual profit: how many rupees the market pays for each rupee the company earns in a year.

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd trades at 17.2× P/E, near the bottom of its own range — cheaper only 24% of the time. Its long-run median P/E is 20.5×, measured across 10.1 years of weekly readings. This places the multiple against the stock’s own record, and says nothing about what the business is worth.

Why this happened. The Maharashtra PSI subsidy provided approximately ₹40-50 Cr in annual cash flow support through October 2025. Approximately ₹40 Cr was expected in FY25 (final year). The subsidy was booked as part of revenue, so its expiry has reduced reported revenue and compressed reported PAT margin. The post-expiry OPM test (sustaining above 22% on underlying business alone) is the critical near-term milestone M1. Management explicitly stated EBITDA could sustain at 10%+ without subsidy — this claim is now verifiable.

Today's P/E of 17.2× is near the bottom of its own range — cheaper only 24% of the time, against a long-run median of 20.5× measured over 10.1 years of weekly readings. This is a comparison against the stock's own history — not a claim about what it is worth.

Why the multiple sits where it does: over the past year annual EPS moved −0.1% against a +3.1% price move — the price outran earnings, pushing the multiple UP its own range.

The price move, decomposed: over 5y, of the +21.9%/yr price move, ~+38.8%/yr came from earnings growth and ~−16.9 pp from the multiple (compressing); over 10y, of the +15.3%/yr price move, ~+40.4%/yr came from earnings growth and ~−25.1 pp from the multiple (compressing). The split is the honest approximate (price return minus earnings growth); it makes the rally itself visible instead of hiding it behind the percentile.

Put together: the multiple is low against its own past, so the story rests on the earnings line underneath it, not the multiple.

A quarterly PEG curve, which only the second data source carries, is not drawn on this page: its two data sources do not share enough overlapping reported history to be compared. A figure nobody could check is not used to price growth — the gap is a decision, not missing data.

Stage: Turning around Every business sits somewhere on a fundamental arc, and this page names the spot before anything else. The last twelve quarters of revenue, profit and EPS growth — plus the return the business earns on its capital — are read as curves: Deteriorating (the curves are falling), Turning around (a trough has just formed and the last few quarters lift off it), Improving (the climb off the trough is sustained), Consistent (steadily positive with healthy returns), Topping out (still high but decelerating from the peak). When the curves genuinely disagree the read is Mixed; too little history is No read. CAGR (compound annual growth rate) is the smooth yearly pace that turns the starting value into the latest one — the fairest way to compare growth across different time spans. Read the columns together: if the 1-year number towers over the 10-year, recent growth is running hotter than the long-run trend. A dash means that window is not held, or the base year was a loss (where a growth rate is not meaningful).

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd reads as turning around on its fundamental arc. Turning around — profit growth swung from −21.1% at the trough to −4.2% off a 4-quarter-old trough, ROCE slipping at 12.0%. The read is built from 9 quarters across 4 curves, on partial evidence.

Why it matters: growth inflections are where re-ratings start — the curves say a turn is forming, so the question becomes whether the next quarters confirm it.

Return readings here are annual, not quarterly — read as level and direction only; they can confirm the growth curves but never drive the stage on their own.

A partial read: at least one curve is short, or the returns curve is not the computed quarterly series — hold the stage word a little more loosely.

4-Factor Sector Score

32.7/100 — rank 3 of 3 in Steel - Wires · 77% evidence confidence

Bharat Wire Ropes Ltd scores 32.7 out of 100 against the 3 companies it is compared with in Steel - Wires, ranking 3. Balanced evidence: keep at normal research priority and require another comparable period before raising conviction.

The four contributions add to the total exactly: 7.2 + 15.5 + 10 + 0 = 32.7. This is the SAME number shown on the sector comparison — it is computed once, for the whole peer set, and read here.

What would change it: The read weakens if profit growth turns negative or margin improvement reverses while sector-relative strength deteriorates.

Frequently asked questions