Apollo Tyres capex jumps as current borrowings reach Rs 2,265 crore

Apollo Tyres Limited spent Rs 1,419.51 crore on property, plant, equipment and intangible assets in the half year ended September 30, 2026, while standalone current borrowings rose to Rs 2,265.12 crore from Rs 844.78 crore at March 31, 2026. The outlay coincided with higher investment in projects and working capital.

How much did Apollo Tyres spend on capital expenditure?

Apollo Tyres spent Rs 1,419.51 crore on purchases of property, plant, equipment and intangible assets in the half year ended September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 305.74 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2025. The investing cash outflow for these purchases therefore increased by Rs 1,113.77 crore year on year. Proceeds from sales of property, plant and equipment were Rs 6.88 crore, compared with Rs 6.38 crore a year earlier.

Capital work-in-progress, or CWIP, rose to Rs 1,728.49 crore at September 30, 2026 from Rs 478.89 crore at March 31, 2026, an increase of Rs 1,249.60 crore in six months. Property, plant and equipment declined to Rs 9,736.26 crore from Rs 10,003.99 crore, while intangible assets under development increased to Rs 82.79 crore from Rs 50.86 crore. The balance-sheet movements show that a substantial part of the increased investment was recorded in unfinished projects rather than completed fixed assets.

Apollo Tyres operates in one segment comprising automobile tyres, automobile tubes and automobile flaps, according to the standalone notes. Its total non-current assets rose to Rs 15,099.45 crore at September 30, 2026 from Rs 13,996.17 crore at March 31, 2026. This Rs 1,103.28 crore increase accompanied the rise in CWIP and other non-current assets.

How did working capital affect Apollo Tyres cash flow?

Apollo Tyres deployed cash into operating assets during the September 2026 half year. Inventories increased by Rs 612.02 crore, trade receivables by Rs 556.67 crore, other financial assets by Rs 27.67 crore and other assets by Rs 425.38 crore. Together, these movements absorbed Rs 1,621.73 crore before changes in operating liabilities.

Increases in liabilities partly offset that cash use. Trade payables rose by Rs 612.12 crore, other financial liabilities by Rs 231.84 crore, other liabilities by Rs 125.43 crore and provisions by Rs 38.96 crore. Cash generated from operations was Rs 782.66 crore, down from Rs 1,077.00 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2025; after net income-tax payments of Rs 153.40 crore, net operating cash flow was Rs 629.26 crore, compared with Rs 952.38 crore a year earlier.

The September 30 balance sheet shows the same expansion in current assets. Inventories stood at Rs 3,728.11 crore, up from Rs 3,116.09 crore at March 31, 2026, while trade receivables rose to Rs 2,855.37 crore from Rs 2,310.05 crore. Other current assets more than doubled to Rs 851.69 crore from Rs 421.62 crore, taking total current assets to Rs 8,481.79 crore from Rs 6,536.19 crore.

How did Apollo Tyres fund the higher outlay?

Apollo Tyres reported net proceeds from current borrowings of Rs 1,285.00 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 585.00 crore in the corresponding prior-year period. It also received Rs 500.00 crore from non-current borrowings and repaid Rs 223.16 crore, producing net proceeds of Rs 276.84 crore from non-current borrowings.

Net cash flow from financing activities was an inflow of Rs 1,132.61 crore, compared with an outflow of Rs 665.52 crore in the prior-year half. The company paid Rs 158.15 crore of dividends, Rs 63.39 crore of lease principal, Rs 18.89 crore of interest on lease liabilities and Rs 188.81 crore of finance costs. Cash and cash equivalents ended the period at Rs 628.43 crore, against Rs 433.37 crore at March 31, 2026.

Current borrowings reached Rs 2,265.12 crore at September 30, 2026, an increase of Rs 1,420.34 crore from six months earlier. Non-current borrowings increased by Rs 142.26 crore to Rs 1,623.20 crore. Apollo Tyres also disclosed Rs 1,250.00 crore of listed non-convertible debentures, or NCDs, and Rs 250.00 crore of commercial paper outstanding at September 30, 2026.

The NCDs are secured by a pari passu first charge over the company’s movable fixed assets, excluding stocks and book debts. Of the NCDs, Rs 500.00 crore carry interest of 8.75% a year and have a 10-year bullet-payment structure. Those NCDs also have an exclusive charge on the registered-office property at Kochi, and the company said the asset cover exceeded 125% of their principal amount.

What changed in Apollo Tyres balance-sheet ratios?

Apollo Tyres reported a standalone debt-equity ratio of 0.32 times at September 30, 2026, compared with 0.20 times at March 31, 2026 and 0.27 times a year earlier. Total debt as a proportion of total assets increased to 16.49% from 11.33% at the March year-end. Its long-term-debt-to-working-capital ratio, calculated using the company’s stated methodology, increased to 1.66 times from 1.12 times.

The current ratio, calculated as current assets divided by current liabilities, declined to 1.10 times at September 30, 2026 from 1.24 times at March 31, 2026. Current liabilities rose by Rs 2,437.81 crore to Rs 7,689.58 crore, exceeding the Rs 1,945.60 crore increase in current assets. Current borrowings, trade payables and other financial liabilities were among the categories contributing to that movement.

Standalone profit after tax for the half year increased to Rs 579.97 crore from Rs 499.34 crore in the prior-year period, while finance costs fell to Rs 154.13 crore from Rs 169.10 crore. Debt-service coverage was 5.10 times, compared with 2.07 times a year earlier. Interest-service coverage was 7.35 times, up from 7.08 times in the corresponding half year, but below 10.31 times for the year ended March 31, 2026.

Conclusion

Apollo Tyres’ standalone filing shows that capital investment accelerated sharply in the half year ended September 30, 2026, with purchases of fixed and intangible assets rising to Rs 1,419.51 crore and CWIP increasing by Rs 1,249.60 crore. Working-capital deployment also reduced operating cash flow, while financing inflows and higher current borrowings accompanied the investing outflow.

The next reported balance-sheet movements will show whether the Rs 1,728.49 crore CWIP balance is transferred into completed property, plant and equipment and whether inventories and receivables continue to absorb cash. Apollo Tyres had Rs 1,250.00 crore of NCDs and Rs 250.00 crore of commercial paper outstanding at September 30, 2026, making future borrowing, repayment and cash-flow disclosures relevant to monitor.