Nifty-500 Earnings Rise 15% in Q2, Driven by Strong Oil & Gas Performance

Mumbai: Companies in the Nifty-500 universe reported a robust 15 per cent year-on-year earnings growth in Q2 FY26—their strongest performance in five quarters—despite geopolitical challenges and sluggish consumer demand, according to a report by Motilal Oswal Financial Services (MOFSL).

Oil and gas stocks, particularly oil marketing companies (OMCs), were the biggest contributors to the surge. The sector posted a 48 per cent rise in EBITDA and a 59 per cent jump in PAT. By contrast, excluding metals and oil & gas, the Nifty-500’s earnings grew by just 9 per cent.

Excluding financials, the aggregate earnings growth for the index stood even higher at 20 per cent YoY.

Overall sales, EBITDA, and adjusted PAT in the Nifty-500 climbed to approximately ?35 trillion, ?8 trillion, and ?4 trillion, respectively—reflecting growth of 8 per cent, 12 per cent, and 15 per cent.

Corporate earnings growth was broad-based across several sectors:

• NBFCs rose 21%

• Metals gained 18%

• Cement surged 211%

• Capital goods grew 30%

• Telecom moved from losses to profit

• Retail advanced 32%

• Real estate increased 22%

Cement delivered its second consecutive strong quarter, with sales up 18 per cent, EBITDA rising 49 per cent, and reported earnings jumping more than threefold year-on-year.

Chemicals and consumer durables also experienced healthy growth on a softer base. Meanwhile, automobiles declined 16 per cent, private banks slipped 3 per cent, and the media sector dropped 10 per cent.

Among metals, ferrous companies benefited from strong volumes and lower costs, while non-ferrous players gained from favourable metal prices and stable demand.

Midcaps and smallcaps outperformed the broader market, with Midcap-150 earnings rising 27 per cent and Smallcap-250 surging 37 per cent. Weakness in private banks and autos contributed to the relative underperformance of large caps compared to SMIDs, the MOFSL report added.

With inputs from IANS