Astra Microwave order book nearly doubles to Rs 3,937 crore

Astra Microwave Products Ltd. ended 30 September 2026 with a standalone order book of Rs 3,937 crore, up Rs 1,781 crore from Rs 2,156 crore on 30 June 2026, led by a Rs 1,878.8 crore radar production order from Hindustan Aeronautics Limited (HAL). Defence and public-sector work made up 99.2% of the closing backlog.

How much did Astra Microwave’s order book grow?

Astra Microwave’s standalone order book grew 82.6% from Rs 2,156 crore on 30 June 2026 to Rs 3,937 crore on 30 September 2026. The company reported Rs 2,036 crore of orders received and Rs 256 crore of orders executed during the period; the Rs 1 crore difference between this arithmetic and the reported closing movement reflects rounding in the presentation.

The 30 September balance was Rs 1,796 crore above the Rs 2,141 crore order book reported at the end of financial year (FY) 2026. This followed a relatively limited change between FY25 and FY26, when backlog rose from Rs 1,952 crore to Rs 2,141 crore, compared with the sharp increase during the second quarter (Q2) of FY27.

The reported Q2 FY27 order intake of Rs 2,036 crore was close to the entire FY26-end backlog of Rs 2,141 crore. Historically, the order book had ranged from Rs 1,544 crore in FY23 to Rs 1,956 crore in FY24 before reaching Rs 2,141 crore in FY26, showing that the September increase was concentrated in the latest quarter.

Which HAL order drove Astra Microwave’s backlog increase?

Astra Microwave’s Rs 1,878.8 crore HAL radar production order was the largest disclosed Q2 FY27 award and accounted for about 94.8% of the Rs 1,981.7 crore major orders listed for the quarter. The order was classified as production work, rather than development work.

The next-largest listed Q2 FY27 award was a Rs 70.9 crore radar production order from Bharat Electronics Limited, Ghaziabad. Other disclosed awards included Rs 11 crore of space production work from the Space Applications Centre, Rs 7.1 crore of missile production work from Research Centre Imarat, and Rs 3.9 crore of radar production work from Bharat Electronics Limited, Ghaziabad.

The scale of the HAL award exceeded the combined Rs 657 crore value of Astra Microwave’s top 10 orders received in FY26. The largest FY26 order in that list was a Rs 145.2 crore meteorology development and production award from the India Meteorological Department, while the largest listed FY26 radar production order was Rs 112.1 crore from the Defence Research and Development Organisation.

What is in Astra Microwave’s September 2026 order book?

Astra Microwave’s Rs 3,937 crore order book was 99.2% defence and public-sector work as of 30 September 2026, with space accounting for the remaining 0.8%. The presentation showed no separate meteorological or export allocation in the segment split at that date.

Production orders totalled Rs 3,230 crore, or 82.0% of backlog, compared with Rs 287 crore of development work, Rs 251 crore of annual maintenance contract (AMC) and service work, and Rs 169 crore of export orders. Production backlog was more than 11 times the reported development balance, reflecting the effect of the HAL production award.

The backlog mix was more production-led than Astra Microwave’s FY26 revenue composition. Production represented 51.0% of FY26 revenue but 93.0% of revenue in the first half (H1) of FY27, while development declined from 27.6% to 5.7% and exports from 11.9% to 0.2% over those reported periods.

How does the backlog compare with Astra Microwave’s revenue?

Astra Microwave’s Rs 3,937 crore order book was about nine times its standalone H1FY27 revenue of Rs 437 crore. Standalone revenue increased 7% from Rs 410 crore in H1FY26, although the presentation does not give an execution schedule for individual orders within the closing backlog.

Quarterly standalone revenue rose 23% to Rs 261 crore in Q2FY27 from Rs 213 crore in Q2FY26. Earnings before interest, tax, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) increased 87% to Rs 87 crore, while profit after tax (PAT) rose 127% to Rs 47 crore; EBITDA margin moved to 33.2% from 21.7%.

Defence contributed 82.7% of Q2FY27 standalone revenue, up from 77.4% in Q2FY26. Space accounted for 4.8% of Q2FY27 revenue and exports including deemed exports represented 6.2%, making quarterly revenue less concentrated in defence and public-sector work than the 99.2% order-book segment split.

Working-capital metrics also changed in FY26. Debtor days fell to 216 from 273 in FY25, inventory days declined to 193 from 213, and the cash conversion cycle reduced to 374 days from 459 days, while creditor days increased to 36 from 27 days.

Conclusion

Astra Microwave’s September 2026 backlog expansion was driven principally by the Rs 1,878.8 crore HAL radar production order, which helped lift the order book to Rs 3,937 crore from Rs 2,156 crore in June. The closing backlog was centred on production work at 82.0% and on defence and public-sector customers at 99.2%, while Q2FY27 standalone revenue was also defence-led at 82.7%.

The next point to watch is the pace at which Astra Microwave converts its Rs 3,230 crore production backlog into revenue. The November 2026 presentation gives no execution schedule, backlog-conversion target or forecast for the Rs 3,937 crore balance, leaving the timing of revenue recognition unresolved.