HAL shares climbed as much as 3% on Wednesday, hitting a fresh 52 week high of ₹5,055 on the NSE, after the company posted strong Q1FY27 earnings.

Consolidated net profit for Q1FY27 rose 14.9% year on year to ₹1,589.66 crore from ₹1,383.77 crore. Revenue from operations grew 14.45% to ₹5,515.17 crore from ₹4,819.01 crore.

Sequentially though, both numbers dropped sharply, since HAL typically books a large share of its deliveries and billing in the March quarter. Profit fell 62.1% from ₹4,196.04 crore in the previous quarter, and revenue was down 60.4% from ₹13,942.40 crore.

On a standalone basis, profitability also improved under the hood. EBITDA rose 19% to ₹1,527 crore from ₹1,284 crore, pushing the standalone operating margin up to 27.67% from 26.64% a year earlier.

Raw material costs fell 12% to ₹2,780 crore from ₹3,162 crore, which helped cushion margins even as employee costs ticked up slightly. That employee cost bump traces back to a policy change.

HAL raised its gratuity ceiling for eligible staff from ₹20 lakh to ₹25 lakh starting October 1 last year, adding ₹2.37 crore in extra liability this quarter alone.

On dividends, the board has recommended a final payout of ₹10 per share for FY26, still pending shareholder approval, on top of the ₹35 per share interim dividend already paid out.

Combined, that takes the total FY26 dividend to ₹45 per share, or 900% of the company’s ₹5 face value. The stock has had a strong run lately too, up around 7.5% over the past five trading sessions and 10% in the last month.

HAL, a Bengaluru based Maharatna defence PSU under the Ministry of Defence, makes aircraft, helicopters and aero engines including the LCA Tejas and the Dhruv helicopter, and its market value now tops ₹3.33 lakh crore.

The stock closed the day at ₹4,995 on the NSE, up 1.75%.

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