Copyright © HT Digital Streams Limit all rights reserved. These five Nifty 50 shares have grown by more than 60% in FY25 earnings per share, thanks to margin profits, cost control and smart capital bets. Summary FY25 has curved on India Inc. thrown, but these five shares fared better than. Here’s what attracts their momentum – and what it can derail. Corporate India hit meager waters in 2025, from sluggish domestic consumption to volatile weather, sticky inflation and geopolitical shocks abroad – the headwinds came from every direction. For many firms, profits got a hit. And yet a few outliers are the chance. In this article, we unpack how selected companies are trend with a strong growth in the line, the levers that drive their profitability, and whether their finish line can continue in FY26 and beyond. Bharti Airtel Bharti Airtel, one of the leading telecommunications players in India, reported a year-on-year (Yoy) earnings per year to £ 58.85 in FY25, higher than £ 13.20 in FY24. This sharp surge was mainly driven by a significant turnaround in other income, which significantly lifted the company’s bottom line. Airtel’s net profit margin also expanded – from 5.7% in FY24 to 21.7% in FY25 – and it has a shift to a more profitable revenue mix and better cost management. Even on an already high basis, Airtel’s revenue has grown gradually. The company reported an increase of 15.3% in the yoy revenue to £ 1.73 lakh crore supported by strong performance in both India and Africa. Higher average revenue per user (ARPU) and growing acceptance of premium digital services have also contributed to the topline momentum. Also read: Sebi’s stricter ESG debt rules can now deter the middle-sized firms with a solid operating foundation, Airtel’s next phase of growth will depend much on the ability to maintain stable cash flow while managing significant debt burden. From FY25, Airtel’s total debt stands at £ 2.12 Lakh Crore, while its cash reserves are limited to £ 16,720 crore. This mismatch points to the continued dependence on the company on the operation of cash flow and refinancing options to fulfill its financial obligations. Management indicated that the company reduced its capex plans for FY26, and to its purpose. Lower capital expenditure is expected to increase free cash flow, which in turn could improve its financial position. Despite the overhang of debt, Airtel’s performance has been constantly strong over the past five years. The company beat a compound annual growth rate (CAGR) of 15% in turnover and 31% in the net profit during this period. The return statistics are also in the sector. Airtel’s return on equity (ROE) is 28.34%, far above many of its peers that report omitted or negative returns. The return on capital in service (ROCE) is also healthy at 15.36%, reflecting the effective deployment of capital in a high -investment industry. Looking forward, Bharti Airtel is expected to further increase tariff levies to strengthen his financial foot. It has also formed strategic partnerships on its cellphone, broadband and digital TV vertical-inclusive bonds with Apple TV and Starlink-to expand its revenue base. In addition, the company prioritizes the growth in broadband and data centers for homes, with plans to double its data center capacity in the next three years to 400 megawatts. Brokerage firm Sharekhan has a ‘buy’ rating on Bharti Airtel, with a revised £ 2,170 price target. Adani Enterprises Adani Enterprises, the flagship business of the Adani Group, saw its EPS more than double in FY25, rising by 117% a year-on-year to £ 61.62 from £ 28.42 in FY24. The boom was largely driven by a one -time profit after tax of £ 3.286 crore from the sale of a 13.5% stake in AWL Agri Business Limited (formerly Adani Wilmar Ltd). On the income front, however, the growth is subdued. During the year sales rose by just 1.5% – from £ 96,421 to £ 97.895 – and followed a strong expansion in the previous fiscal. Despite the flat topline, the company has reported a strong operating. The operating profit margin rose from 12% in FY24 to 15%, indicating a better efficiency and cost management. Looking forward, Adani Enterprises remains his well -known incubation model, with planned investments in emerging and core infrastructure sectors. The group places large bets on green hydrogen, data centers, airports, roads, copper and petrochemicals to create long -term values. To finance these ambitions, the company expects between $ 15-20 billion annually over the next five years (£ 1.3-1.7 Lakh Crore). For FY26 alone, it earmarked £ 5.500 crore to build its green hydrogen ecosystem. But such large -scale plans will require heavy financing. Adani Enterprises already bears a substantial debt of £ 91.819 crore, which has driven its debt-to-equity ratio to 1.82 times. With cash reserves of just £ 6.962 crore, the company remains dependent on external financing and asset -monetization. The sale of the remaining 30.42% stake in Adani Wilmar is expected to provide interim support for emerging capital investments. Over the past five years, Adani has delivered Enterprises impressive financial growth, with revenue rising at a Cagr of 18% and net profit at 39%. That said, its yield ratios remain in single figures, with Roe at 9.8% and Roce at 9.5%, which is an indication of room for improvement in capital efficiency. Regulatory risks are still about the business. The credit rating agency ICRA noted that the US Department of Justice (DOJ) and the Securities and Exchange Commission (SEC) filed an indictment and a civil complaint involving the group’s promoters, which remains under judicial consideration. In India, the Securities and Exchange Board of India (Sebi) in the last stages of his investigation into the group was raised to the allegations raised in the Hindenburg report. Investors are advised to carefully monitor these developments, as this can significantly affect the sentiment of investors and corporate governance. Despite its strong profit performance, the share of Adani Enterprises has dropped 22% over the past year. Yet it still acts at a sharp valuation, with a price-to-earnings (p/e) ratio of 66x-which is above its average of 10 years of 27.3x. Tech Mahindra Tech Mahindra, the Mahindra Group IT arm, suffered a strong setback in the profitability in FY25, with earnings per share (EPS) rising by 79.9% year-on-year to £ 43.43. This impressive growth of the line was despite the subdued momentum of income and was largely driven by the recovery of margin and operational efficiency. The turnover rose a modest 1.9% year-on-year to £ 52,988, reflecting the ongoing weakness in IT spending on the most important global vertical. The actual improvement came on the cost -side. Business margins expanded from 9% in FY24 to 13% in FY25, thanks to stricter cost control and a reduction in wage inflation pressure. This improvement of 400 base point margin follows a low in FY24 and the progress of the company’s reversal efforts. In his latest earnings call, management acknowledged that macro economic conditions remain difficult, and FY26 is expected to be another challenging year due to global pre -wind. Nevertheless, Tech Mahindra remains focused on its FY27 goals, which includes the growth of the industry, achieving a 15% EBIT margin and a ROCE of more than 30%. The company is working on its strong transaction pipeline to supplement this growth. In FY25, the total $ 2.7 billion transaction, which was 42.5% higher than the previous year, has a sign of improving customer traction. However, if it is seen in a longer timeframe, the financial performance of the business was underscoring. Over the past five years, turnover has grown against a CAGR of just 8%, while the net profit has risen by only 2%. This subdued growth reflects sustained macroeconomic pressure in core markets such as the US and Europe, as well as competitive pressure from both greater and mid-level-IT opponents. Also read: China’s rare earth: time to reconsider these Indian EV shares? Tech Mahindra’s return relationships are also behind his peers. The Roe stands at 15.7% and ROCE at 20.1% – both lower than industry leaders such as TCs and Infosys. Even some IT firms in the mid-cap, such as HCL Tech and Persistent Systems, have placed stronger capital efficiency statistics. Although the recent transaction momentum is encouraging, the company still has a major foundation to cover to suit the operational and financial performance of its top competitors. That said, the brokerage firm Sharkhan remains optimistic. It maintained a ‘buy’ rating on Tech Mahindra and reviewed the target price up to £ 1.650. The firm is of the opinion that the company, despite the broader slowdown in the industry, has made significant progress and is now on a firmer footing to reduce the performance gap with its larger peers. Apollo Hospitals Enterprise Apollo Hospitals Enterprises, one of India’s largest integrated healthcare service providers, reported a strong performance in FY25, with earnings per share (EPS) rising 61% year-on-year to £ 100.56. The growth has been driven by better utilization of assets, margin expansion and good performance in its hospital and pharmacy distribution companies. The turnover grew by 14.3% year to £ 21,794, supported by a strong question about important vertical, including tertiary care, diagnostics and the digital platform Apollo 24/7. The post-pandemic tendency towards organized healthcare and wellness services also has still supported the overall business momentum. Operating margins improved by 100 basis points – from 13% in FY24 to 14% in FY25 – reflecting stricter cost control measures and stronger price power, especially in specialized care offers. Looking forward, Apollo set out an ambitious growth plan aimed at expanding its integrated healthcare ecosystem while retaining profitability. The company plans to invest more than £ 8,000 crore to add 4300 beds over the next 3-4 years. Of these, £ 1,000 crore has already been deployed, with the remaining capital expenditure largely funded by internal growth. Apollo’s healthy free cash flow generation-which is £ 1,000 crore annually-holds a strong basis for self-financed growth. Over the past five years, Apollo has achieved constant financial profits, with revenue rising at a CAGR of 14%, and net profit grows by a much stronger CAGR of 37%. It is supported by rising operating leverage over business experience. The company’s yield statistics are also impressive: its roe stands at 19.1%, while Roce is 17.1% – both far above the media in the industry. The Roe is one of the top three in the sector, and its ROCE exceeds its cost of capital, which helps to justify its expansion -led strategy. That said, Apollo’s debt-to-equity ratio is relatively high at 0.96x-the highest among the most important hospital chains. Although it adds some financial risk, the company’s strong cash flow and internal capital generation help reduce concerns. Management has also expressed confidence in maintaining momentum in FY26, with the aim of maintaining hospital margins at about 24%, even if new facilities come online. Brokerage firm Motilal Oswal has a ‘buy’ rating on Apollo hospitals with a target price of £ 8,050. It expects emerging bed supplements, the narrowing of losses on health technology and a turnaround in diagnostics to support revenue growth in the coming quarters. Hindalco Hindalco Industries, one of India’s leading producers of aluminum and copper, ended FY25 with a record performance. The company reported an EPS of £ 71.20, increasing by a year-on-year 57.6%. The net profit climbed to a peak of £ 16,002, blown by higher volumes, an improved product mix across both aluminum and head Enterprises, and relieve the input costs. A stable interest burden and consistent tax rate supported further growth in the line. Revenue grew by 10.4% year to £ 2,38,496 crore, aided by resilient domestic and export demand on industrial and packaging segments. Despite the volatility of the global commodity, Hindalco has benefited from favorable price trends and continuing operational efficiency. Operating margins also improved from 11% to 13%, which reflect better and reflect stricter cost controls – especially in its subsidiary of the novel and India’s upstream operations. Looking forward, Hindalco drew his attention to the scale of production in both its aluminum and copper divisions. The company aims to celebrate the EBITDA of downstream EBITDA by FY30 compared to FY24, with significant investments planned to support this target. A key initiative includes securing raw materials by obtaining the Bandha coal mine, which will ensure coal supply to his Mahan smelter for the next 45 years. For FY26, the company earmarked capital expenditure of £ 7,500-8,000 crore, with even higher expenses projected for FY27 as large-scale projects rise. With cash and cash equivalents of £ 10,846 crore, Hindalco remains well positioned to finance this expansion without excessive reliance on debt. Over the past five years, the company has delivered strong financial statements, with turnover and net profit growing at compound annual growth rates (CAGR) of 15% and 34% respectively. Hindalco’s return metric reflects its operational strength, with Roe at 14.5% and Roce at 15.2%- is above most aluminum counterparts in the middle and small cap, although slightly below Nalco levels. The debt-to-equity ratio is 0.52x, in accordance with the average in the industry and significantly lower than more levers such as Arfin and Euro Panel. Strong internal accruals provide a pillow for the upcoming Capeex cycles, which keep the lever in check. However, emerging risks remain. Crisil ratings recently labeled US rates on aluminum imports from Canada and Mexico – countries that supply raw materials to the US plants of Novelis – as a possible pre -wind of the supply chain. The management has made it clear that any price increases will be passed on to customers as a result of these rates, which helps to secure the margins. Brokers ICICI Securities has a ‘buy’ rating on Hindalco with a target price of £ 770, citing its strong operating performance, comfortable leverage and strong growth outlook. Conclusion in a year was blurred by macroeconomic uncertainty, volatile consumption patterns and sector-specific windwinds, these five companies-Bharti Airtel, Adani Enterprises, Tech Mahindra, Apollo Hospitals and Hindalco-stood out by delivering strong growth in earnings. Their performance is anchored by margin expansion, strategic capital allocation and operational discipline. Still, investors need to look beyond the EPS figures. Ambitious Capeex plans, rich valuations and risks ranging from telecommunications and global rates to regulatory investigation and competition all deserve careful investigation. As the Indian economy enters a new phase of growth and adjustment, the ability of these businesses to maintain their momentum and volatility will determine long-term values. Also read: Battery Energy Storage Shares: A small cap list on the author: Ayesha Shetty is a research analyst registered with the Securities and Exchange Board of India. She is a Certified Financial Risk Manager (FRM) and works on the Chartered Financial Analyst (CFA) designation. Disclosure: The author does not hold shares in any of the businesses discussed. The opinions expressed are only for information purposes and should not be considered investment advice. Readers need to do their own research and consult a financial professional before making investment decisions. Catch all the business news, market news, news reports and latest news updates on Live Mint. Download the Mint News app to get daily market updates. More Topics #profit Pulse #Markets Premium #Stocks To Watch Read the following story
These 5 Nifty shares delivered the strongest EPS profits in a weak FY25
