Sotefin Bharat half-year profit rises 57% to Rs 7.85 crore

Sotefin Bharat Limited reported profit after tax of Rs 7.85 crore for the half year ended September 30, 2026, up 57% from Rs 5.01 crore a year earlier, as revenue from operations rose 17% to Rs 43.26 crore. Operating activities nevertheless used Rs 2.83 crore of cash after higher working-capital needs and Rs 3.89 crore of income-tax payments.

How did Sotefin Bharat’s half-year earnings change?

Sotefin Bharat’s profit after tax increased by Rs 2.84 crore to Rs 7.85 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2026, from Rs 5.01 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2025. Revenue from operations rose by Rs 6.22 crore to Rs 43.26 crore, while total income, including Rs 88.47 lakh of other income, reached Rs 44.14 crore against Rs 37.90 crore a year earlier.

Profit before tax rose 34% to Rs 9.19 crore from Rs 6.83 crore. Net tax expense fell to Rs 1.34 crore from Rs 1.82 crore, helping post-tax profit grow faster than pre-tax profit; the latest period included current tax of Rs 2.46 crore, a Rs 74.43 lakh adjustment for tax relating to earlier years and a Rs 38.41 lakh deferred-tax credit.

Basic and diluted earnings per equity share of face value Rs 10 increased to Rs 5.17 from Rs 3.94. The September 2026 results were unaudited and subject to a limited review, while the September 2025 comparative figures were management-certified and were not subject to the statutory auditors’ limited review.

What costs changed in Sotefin Bharat’s September 2026 half year?

Sotefin Bharat’s total expenses increased 13% to Rs 34.96 crore from Rs 31.07 crore, below the 17% increase in revenue from operations. Cost of materials consumed rose to Rs 17.10 crore from Rs 12.42 crore, while civil and installation expenses were Rs 10.95 crore, compared with Rs 10.84 crore in the prior-year half year.

Employee-benefit expense increased to Rs 5.42 crore from Rs 3.38 crore, depreciation and amortisation rose to Rs 1.69 crore from Rs 71.89 lakh, and other expenses increased to Rs 4.85 crore from Rs 2.70 crore. Finance costs moved lower to Rs 61.31 lakh from Rs 1 crore, while the company recorded a Rs 5.66 crore reduction in finished-goods and work-in-progress inventories; the comparable September 2025 line was nil.

The disclosed figures imply that profit before tax was about 21% of total income in the September 2026 half year, compared with about 18% a year earlier. Sotefin Bharat said its business predominantly falls within one primary segment, manufacturing and installation of automated parking solutions, and therefore reported no separate business segments under Accounting Standard 17.

Why did Sotefin Bharat report negative operating cash flow?

Sotefin Bharat reported net cash used in operating activities of Rs 2.83 crore in the half year ended September 30, 2026, compared with an outflow of Rs 1.70 crore a year earlier. Operating profit before working-capital changes was Rs 11.14 crore, but a Rs 7.42 crore increase in trade receivables, a Rs 1.95 crore increase in inventory and Rs 3.89 crore of income-tax payments reduced cash flow.

Cash generated from operations before tax was Rs 1.06 crore, compared with negative Rs 1.30 crore in the prior-year half year. A Rs 2.46 crore increase in other current liabilities partly offset the cash effects of receivables, inventories, other current assets and trade payables, while trade payables declined by Rs 1.04 crore in the latest period.

Trade receivables stood at Rs 82.52 crore at September 30, 2026, up from Rs 75.13 crore at March 31, 2026. Inventories rose to Rs 11.08 crore from Rs 9.12 crore over the same period, matching the working-capital outflows shown in the cash-flow statement and leaving operating cash flow negative despite the reported Rs 7.85 crore profit after tax.

How did Sotefin Bharat deploy IPO proceeds and financing cash?

Sotefin Bharat completed an initial public offer of 48 lakh fresh equity shares and its shares were listed on the BSE SME Exchange on July 23, 2026. The cash-flow statement recorded Rs 89.76 crore of proceeds from the issue of share capital and Rs 9.11 crore of initial-public-offer expenses, while unutilised issue proceeds stood at Rs 51.12 crore on September 30, 2026.

Of Rs 89.76 crore stated in the prospectus, Sotefin Bharat had used Rs 38.64 crore by September 30, 2026. This included Rs 30 crore for working-capital requirements and Rs 8.64 crore for issue-related expenses; no utilisation was reported for the planned Kolkata manufacturing facility, proposed office premises or general corporate purposes.

Financing activities provided Rs 64.74 crore, compared with Rs 9.42 crore in the prior-year half year, principally because of the share issue. Sotefin Bharat repaid Rs 18.83 crore of short-term borrowings on a net basis and reported cash and bank balances of Rs 55.46 crore at September 30, 2026, compared with Rs 75.69 lakh at March 31, 2026.

Conclusion

Sotefin Bharat’s first half-year result after its July 23, 2026 listing showed profit after tax rising faster than revenue, with Rs 7.85 crore of profit on Rs 43.26 crore of revenue. Total expenses increased more slowly than revenue and finance costs fell, but the Rs 7.42 crore receivables increase, Rs 1.95 crore inventory increase and Rs 3.89 crore of tax payments resulted in Rs 2.83 crore of negative operating cash flow.

The next disclosed execution items are use of the Rs 51.12 crore of unutilised IPO proceeds and progress on the Rs 20.13 crore Kolkata manufacturing facility and Rs 8.17 crore proposed office premises, neither of which had received funding by September 30, 2026. Sotefin Bharat said there was no deviation or variation from the prospectus objects during the quarter ended September 30, 2026.