Mumbai, India — Companies in the Nifty-500 index posted a 15 percent rise in aggregate earnings for Q2 FY26, marking the strongest quarterly performance in five quarters despite geopolitical uncertainty and sluggish consumer demand, according to a report released Thursday by Motilal Oswal Financial Services (MOFSL).
Oil and gas companies, particularly oil marketing firms, were the standout contributors. The sector reported a 48 percent jump in EBITDA and a 59 percent surge in profit after tax, significantly lifting overall index performance.
However, excluding metals and oil and gas, aggregate earnings for the Nifty-500 rose a more modest 9 percent year-over-year. Excluding financial stocks, earnings grew 20 percent.
Overall sales, EBITDA and adjusted profit after tax reached roughly Rs 35 trillion, Rs 8 trillion and Rs 4 trillion respectively—up 8 percent, 12 percent and 15 percent from the year-ago period.
Earnings growth was broadly spread across sectors. Non-banking financial companies saw earnings climb 21 percent, metals rose 18 percent, and cement delivered a sharp 211 percent increase. Capital goods recorded 30 percent growth, telecom swung from losses to profit, retail gained 32 percent, and real estate advanced 22 percent.
Cement companies posted a second consecutive strong quarter after previous weak periods. Sales rose 18 percent year-over-year, EBITDA increased 49 percent, and reported earnings were up more than threefold.
Chemicals and consumer durables experienced strong gains driven by a soft base, while automobiles declined 16 percent, private banks fell 3 percent and media slipped 10 percent.
Ferrous producers benefited from strong volumes and lower costs, while non-ferrous companies were supported by favorable metal prices and steady demand.
Midcap and small-cap companies outperformed the larger universe, with Midcap-150 earnings up 27 percent and Smallcap-250 earnings rising 37 percent. Weakness in private banks and the auto sector contributed to relative underperformance among large-cap companies. (Source: IANS)
