L&T Q3 results preview: Profits seen growing 20-35% YoY, revenue growth likely around 16%. 6 things to watch

Engineering and construction conglomerate Larsen & Toubro (L&T) is expected to report strong performance in the December-quarter, supported by steady execution, operating leverage and strong order book. As per estimates of four brokerages, the company will be Rs. 4,038 crore and Rs. 4,548 crore is expected to post net profit growth in a wide range of 20%-35%.

They also expect double-digit growth in revenue and EBITDA, while stressing the need to track management commentary on order inflows, margins and execution velocity.

Estimates from Elara Capital, Nuwama Institutional Equities, PL Capital and JM Financial have been considered.

Topline in Q3FY26 was Rs. 73,560 crore to Rs. 75,366 crore in the range of up to 16%.

L&T will announce its earnings on Wednesday, January 28 and here are what brokerage estimates say on key parameters:

1) PAT

— Elara Capital: PAT Rs. 4,090 crore, up 22% year-on-year.

— Nuwama: PAT grew 20% YoY and 3% QoQ to Rs. 4,038 crore was seen.

— PL Capital: Adjusted PAT Rs. 4,282 crore is estimated, up 27% YoY and 9% QoQ.

–JM Financial: PAT Rs. 4,548 crore expected, showing a strong 35% YoY and 16% QoQ growth.

2) Income

— Elara Capital: Rs. 73,560 crore, up 14% YoY and 8% QoQ

— Nuwama: Rs. 74,364 crore, up 15% YoY and 9.4% QoQ

— PL Capital: Rs. 75,366 crore, up 16% YoY and 11% YoY

–JM Financial: Rs. 74,552 crore, up 15% YoY and 10% QoQ

3) EBITDA

Earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortization (EBITDA) could grow in a wide range between 13% and 23%.

— Elara Capital: EBITDA Rs. 7,090 crore, up 13% YoY.

— Nuwama: EBITDA grew by 19% YoY and 10% QoQ at Rs 7,465 crore.

— PL Capital: EBITDA Rs. 7,721 crore estimate, up 23% YoY and 13% QoQ.

–JM Financial: EBITDA Rs. 7,662 crore expected, up 22% YoY and 13% QoQ.

4) Margin

Nuwama maintained an EBITDA margin of around 10%, compared to 9.7% in the year-ago quarter and largely flat sequentially, supported by operating leverage. The brokerage believes the core operating margin has come down to around 8.2% and should sustain in the 8.3-8.5% range in FY27-28E as projects move into the margin-accretive phase.

PL Capital expects margins of 10.2%, up 57 basis points YoY and 23 basis points QoQ, driven by better execution and scale benefits.

Both Ilara and JM Financial expect a modest improvement in margins, aided by operating leverage and improved execution.

5) Order Book

Nuwama: Around Rs. 7 lakh crore estimated order book, up 24% YoY and 5% QoQ, translating to a healthy 3.6x sales of FY25. For brokerage H2FY26 Rs. 10.4 lakh crore also highlights the order pipeline, up 29% year-on-year, mostly in the infrastructure and hydrocarbon segments.

Nuwama said in its note that it expects H2FY26 to be performance-heavy after a weak H1 affected by the monsoon. Conversion of Middle East L1 orders worth around USD 4.5 billion and a normalized inflow run rate could lead to FY26 order inflow growth of 12-15%.

PL Capital notes that after the Q2FY26 results, L&T has already raised around Rs. 14,500–30,000 crore of orders announced, supporting near-term revenue visibility.

6) Key monitorable

Commentary on the pace of implementation and sustainability of margin recovery in domestic and international projects will be closely watched.

According to PL Capital, investors will track ordering activity from the Middle East, performance of infrastructure and P&M businesses and management’s view on local execution trends.

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