Shares of defence company Bharat Dynamics Ltd (BDL) crashed 8.5% to their day's low of Rs 1,175 on the BSE on Friday after it reported a sharp decline in its standalone earnings for the January-March quarter of FY26, with net profit falling 58.5% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 113.18 crore from Rs 272.77 crore in the corresponding quarter last year.
Revenue from operations also saw a steep drop during the quarter, declining nearly 73% YoY to Rs 480 crore, compared with Rs 1,777 crore reported in the same period of the previous financial year.
The company’s total expenses fell significantly to Rs 445.47 crore in Q4 FY26 from Rs 1,498 crore a year earlier. Total income for the quarter stood at Rs 599 crore, down from Rs 1,876 crore reported in the year-ago period.
For the full financial year FY26, the company reported a standalone net profit of Rs 420 crore, marking a 23% YoY decline from Rs 550 crore recorded in FY25. Revenue from operations for the financial year fell 27% YoY to Rs 2,442 crore. Total expenses during FY26 stood at Rs 2,298 crore, while total income came in at Rs 2,866 crore.
Motilal Oswal downgraded Bharat Dynamics to “Neutral” and cut the target price to Rs 1,150 from Rs 1,500 earlier, implying a downside potential of around 10%. The brokerage said it expects execution to remain slower than previously anticipated, while margins are likely to stay under pressure due to the higher share of bought-out components. As a result, it has reduced its FY27 and FY28 earnings estimates by 25% and 28%, respectively.
The brokerage also highlighted key risks including lower defence spending or reprioritisation of the Indian defence budget, cancellation of contracts, failure to win new projects, changes in procurement regulations and supply chain-related disruptions.
The stock has slipped more than 1% over the past one week and around 7% in the last one month. So far in 2026, the shares are down 13%. Over a longer period, the stock has fallen 33% in the past one year. However, it has gained more than 145% in three years and surged 621% over the last five years.
Alongside its quarterly results, Bharat Dynamics said its board has recommended a final dividend of Rs 0.40 per equity share with a face value of Rs 5 each for the financial year ended March 31, 2026. The dividend remains subject to shareholder approval at the company’s upcoming Annual General Meeting (AGM).
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