Bharti Airtel target raised to Rs 2,355 in 2026

What changed in Nomura’s latest call

Nomura has reiterated its ‘Buy’ rating on Bharti Airtel and raised its target price to Rs 2,355 from Rs 2,220. The brokerage linked the upgrade to sustained ARPU growth, strong free cash flow generation, and what it described as attractive valuations. The note also frames Airtel as a premium operator trading at a discount to its main rival. Nomura’s core argument is that the valuation gap does not reflect operating metrics such as ARPU, margins, and cash generation.

Why ARPU and free cash flow matter in telecom

Nomura’s thesis puts ARPU at the centre of Airtel’s earnings momentum. In telecom, ARPU growth typically supports both revenue resilience and operating leverage, particularly when network costs do not rise at the same pace. The brokerage also highlighted strong free cash flow, a metric investors track closely because it reflects the ability to fund capex, reduce debt, and increase shareholder payouts. While the note does not provide a single ARPU number in this data set, it repeatedly attributes the positive stance to sustained ARPU growth and cash flow.

Airtel valuation versus Reliance Jio: the gap Nomura flags

Nomura said Bharti Airtel’s India telecom business trades at an implied 9.3x FY28 EV/EBITDA. In comparison, it cited an implied multiple of roughly 12.2x for Reliance Jio. The brokerage argued this is notable because it sees Airtel as delivering higher ARPU, superior margins, and stronger free cash flow. In Nomura’s words, a “premium operator priced at a discount to its main rival” is not justified.

Nomura also referenced valuation levels on other forecast years in the same theme. One note in the provided information says Airtel was trading at 9.3x FY27F EV/EBITDA and 7.9x FY28F EV/EBITDA, based on its estimates. Another line states that after a recent price correction, Bharti’s India business was trading at an implied valuation of 10x FY28 EBITDA, which the brokerage finds attractive.

Stock price action: what the tape shows around the call

Multiple price snapshots in the provided data show Airtel trading in a wide band across different sessions. One feed shows Bharti Airtel at ₹1,841.10 (down ₹9.60, or 0.52% on the day), with an open of ₹1,837.10, day’s low of ₹1,833.10, and day’s high of ₹1,849.80. Another snapshot shows a previous close of ₹1,850.70.

Separately, a trading update described Airtel on a three-session winning streak, with the stock rising as much as 2.11% in early trade to touch a day’s high of ₹1,923.15. It also said that at that high, the stock had gained up to 7.55% over two trading sessions after the announcement of Q4FY26 results.

Other broker targets: a broadly bullish street

Beyond Nomura, other brokerages in the same set of information also maintained constructive views with ‘Buy’ calls and higher target prices. Nuvama Institutional Equities retained a ‘Buy’ rating with a target price of ₹2,550 per share, and the note indicated it implied about 33% upside from then-current levels. Axis Direct maintained a ‘Buy’ recommendation with a target of ₹2,530. JM Financial kept its ‘Buy’ rating with a target of ₹2,450 and added an industry view that wireless ARPU is likely to grow at around 12% CAGR over FY26–28, driven by regular tariff hikes and premiumisation strategies. PL Capital maintained a ‘Buy’ with a target of ₹2,226.

Jefferies on Jio IPO as a potential catalyst

Jefferies also featured in the data with a ‘Buy’ stance and a higher target price of ₹2,760 (raised from ₹2,635), calling Bharti Airtel its top pick in Indian telecom. The report linked sector re-rating potential to tariff hikes and the planned Jio Platforms IPO in the first half of calendar year 2026, a timeline it said Mukesh Ambani had guided to. Jefferies argued the IPO is unlikely to be an overhang for Bharti, pointing to the stock’s 32% gain in 2025 despite more than $1 billion of promoter share sales.

The Jefferies note also discussed index implications, estimating that once Jio is included in major benchmarks with a roughly 33% free float, the neutral weight of telecom in indices such as Nifty50 and MSCI India could rise from about 4–5% to 7–8%. It also flagged optionality from enterprise, data centre and cloud services, described as around 2% of India ex-towers revenues, with potential to add 1–3 percentage points of incremental growth each year over the next five years as these businesses scale.

Near-term triggers highlighted by Nomura

Nomura pointed to three near-term triggers for Bharti Airtel: an impending tariff hike, the potential Jio Platforms IPO, and a favourable resolution of the adjusted gross revenue (AGR) matter. It also provided scenario targets in one note, with a bull-case target of ₹2,875 and a bear-case of ₹1,810. Another Nomura projection in the provided information forecasts 14–15% EBITDA compounding over the next 2–3 years, supported by a steady 10–11% ARPU CAGR.

Key data points at a glance

Broker target prices mentioned in the data

Market impact and what investors are tracking

Nomura’s call reinforces a valuation debate between Airtel and Reliance Jio, focusing on implied EV/EBITDA multiples and operating quality metrics such as ARPU and cash flow. The repeated emphasis on free cash flow also ties into how the market values telecom operators as they transition from heavy investment phases to steadier cash generation. In the near term, the set of triggers repeatedly cited across notes includes tariff hikes and developments around Jio Platforms’ IPO timeline.

Investors are also watching how brokerages interpret the post-results stock move referenced in the data, where Airtel’s intraday rise to ₹1,923.15 followed Q4FY26 results. Separately, one market snapshot shows broader index weakness alongside Airtel, noting at 9:29 AM the stock was down 1.01% at ₹1,860.7 while the BSE Sensex was down 1.07% at 80,420.09.

Conclusion

Nomura’s target hike to Rs 2,355 keeps Bharti Airtel positioned as a ‘Buy’ idea anchored in ARPU-led earnings strength, free cash flow generation, and a valuation gap versus Reliance Jio. The broader brokerage commentary in the provided data remains largely constructive, with multiple ‘Buy’ ratings and targets extending up to ₹2,760. Near-term focus remains on tariff action, the expected Jio Platforms IPO window in 1H 2026, and any progress on the AGR matter, all of which were explicitly listed as key triggers in the brokerage notes.