Protean eGov Technologies Limited

Technology — Information Technology Services · NSE

₹629.10−₹13.30 (−2.07%)

DalalBaazaar Score

48 / 100

🟡 Moderate

Verdict

NEUTRAL

Risk

High

Driven by high debt relative to equity, micro-cap size, which brings thin liquidity, falling profits.

In simple words: Reasonable but unspectacular business quality, though profits are falling even as sales grow. Debt is the main factor to watch.

Decision support, not a buy or sell call.

As of 18 Oct 2026, 7:01 pm

Understanding the Business

Company site ↗

The 60-second version of Protean eGov Technologies Limited — what it does, how it earns, and who it competes with, before any of the numbers below.

What does this company do?

Protean eGov Technologies Limited, together with its subsidiaries, develops and implements citizen-centric and population-scale e-governance solutions and digital public infrastructure in India.

IndustryInformation Technology Services

SectorTechnology

Employees839

Annual revenue₹988 Cr

How does it make money?

Turns over ₹988 Cr a year. Of every ₹100 of sales, about ₹10 reaches shareholders as profit, with ₹20 left at the operating level before interest, tax and depreciation. Each of its 839 employees supports ₹1.18 Cr of revenue a year, the signature of a capital- or asset-led business.

Revenue / employee₹1.18 Cr

Who are its competitors?

The closest listed comparisons in its industry are TATA CONSULTANCY SERV LT, INFOSYS LIMITED, HCL TECHNOLOGIES LTD, WIPRO LTD. These are the companies its valuation and returns are measured against elsewhere in this report.

Compared side by side in Peers ↓

What is its competitive advantage?Little sign of one

Returns on capital of 11.7% are at or below what the capital likely costs. That is the financial pattern of a business competing largely on price, where advantage has to come from execution rather than position.

Peer median ROE32.0%

What is the outlook?

2 analysts covering the stock expect revenue to grow about 9.0% and earnings to grow about 26.7% in the year to 2028. These are estimates by people who follow the company, not a forecast for the wider industry.

Est. revenue growth+9.0%

Est. earnings growth+26.7%

Analysts2

What has been driving growth?

Sales and margins have both contributed to where profit is now. Over 3 years revenue moved +35% while net margin moved -30% relative to itself. What this cannot tell you is which products, customers or geographies did the work — that lives in the segment disclosures of the annual report.

Revenue effect+35%

Margin effect-30%

DalalBaazaar Score

48/ 100

Moderate

Weighted across six categories. Every point is explained below.

• Revenue CAGR of 10.6% is steady
✗ Profit has declined at 2.1% a year
✗ Profit is compounding slower than revenue — margins are being squeezed as the business grows
✗ Profit fell 75.6% in the latest year

Quality vs. Valuation

Company Quality

47/ 100

Average

How good the business is, ignoring the share price entirely.

Valuation

50/ 100

Fair

What you are being asked to pay, ignoring how good the business is.

A reasonable business at a reasonable price — neither the quality nor the valuation stands out in either direction.

Historical Valuation

Current P/E

31.1x

2Y Median

32.8x

22 monthly readings · mean 33.4x · range 19.7x–56.0x

Sector Median

16.5x

median of 4 sector peers

🟡Currently trading close to its 2y median of 32.8x — the market is paying about what it usually pays for this company.

⚠️Against its sector it trades 88% above the peer median of 16.5x.

vs. its own history

Fair

32.8x median over 22 months · -5%

vs. sector peers

Expensive

16.5x median of 4 peers · +88%

vs. generic bands

Fair

15x–35x

EV/EBITDA

13.4x

PEG

—

What's Good / What's Bad

🟢 What's Going Well1

Consistently profitable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years.

🔴 What Needs Attention2

Return on equity is falling
ROE has dropped from 12.5% to 9.3% — each rupee of shareholder capital earns less than it did.
Return on capital is falling
ROCE has declined from 16.1% to 11.7% — often a sign of competition or overexpansion.

Red Flags

4 items require attention · 3 high · 1 watch

🔴Debt has risen sharplyFinancial
Total debt is up 1005% over 3 years, from ₹8 Cr to ₹87 Cr.
🔴High leverageFinancial
Debt/Equity of 8.12x — earnings must service borrowings before shareholders see anything.
🔴Profit up while operating cash flow fallsFinancial
Reported profit rose but cash generated by operations declined — worth checking whether earnings are being supported by non-cash items or working capital.
🟡Margins are compressingFinancial
EBITDA margin is down 2.1 points over 3 years.

Investment Thesis

🟢 Bull CaseWhat could make this work?

Earnings have proved durable
Profitable in every one of the last 4 reported years. Consistency lowers the risk that any single bad year is structural rather than cyclical.

🔴 Bear CaseWhat could go wrong?

Margins are being competed away
EBITDA margin has fallen from 21.9% to 19.7%. If the trend continues, profit falls even on flat sales — and margin decline rarely reverses quickly.
Leverage amplifies any setback
Debt/Equity of 8.12x. Interest is payable whether or not the business has a good year.
A premium to the sector to defend
It trades 88% above the peer median. That premium needs a reason that persists, or it closes.
Returns on shareholder capital are falling
ROE has dropped from 12.5% to 9.3%. Each rupee of equity earns less than it did, so profit growth increasingly depends on raising more capital rather than on the existing base working harder.
Size brings its own risk
Micro Cap businesses are thinly traded, so exits are harder in a falling market and single events move the price more than they would for a larger company.

🟡 Key Things to WatchMeasurable tripwires, set against where this company stands today

1Revenue growth stays above 8% a year✓ 10.6% CAGR
Latest reported year was 19.0%. The bar is set below the established compounding rate, so ordinary variation does not trip it.
2EBITDA margin holds above 18%✓ 19.7%
Two points below today's level — enough room for noise, tight enough to catch real compression.
3Free cash flow remains positive✓ ₹12 Cr
Profit that never becomes cash eventually stops being profit.
4Debt / EBITDA stays below 2x✓ 0.4x
The ratio lenders write covenants against; it survives a small or negative equity base, unlike Debt/Equity.
5ROCE stays above 9%✓ 11.7%
Falling returns on capital are usually competition arriving, and show up here before they reach the margin.

Investment Checklist

7 / 12 checks passed

✗ Strong return on equity (ROE ≥ 15%)
✗ Strong return on capital employed (ROCE ≥ 15%)
✗ Healthy net margin (≥ 10%)
✓ Generates positive free cash flow
✗ Manageable leverage (Debt/Equity < 1.0)
✓ Adequate short-term liquidity (Current Ratio ≥ 1.0)
✓ Revenue growing year-over-year
✗ Profit growing year-over-year
✓ Not trading at an extreme valuation (P/E < 40x)
✓ Not buying right at the 52-week high
✓ Analyst consensus isn't majority-sell
✓ Short-term technical trend isn't bearish

Price history

Quick Metrics

3 good · 6 neutral · 2 weak

Market Cap

₹2,565 Cr

Micro Cap

Smaller company — thin liquidity and deep drawdowns are normal here

P/E (Trailing)

31.1x

Fair

Fairly valued against the generic band

P/B Ratio

2.37x

Fair

Moderate premium to the company's book value

EPS (TTM)

₹20.26

Profitable

Profitable on a per-share basis

ROE

9.3%

Moderate

Moderate capital efficiency

ROCE

11.7%

Moderate

Moderate return on the capital in the business

Debt/Equity

8.12x

High

High leverage

Revenue Growth (YoY)

19.0%

Healthy

Healthy top-line growth

Profit Growth (YoY)

-75.6%

Falling

Profits are shrinking

Dividend Yield

1.59%

Modest

Small cash return — most of the return has to come from the price

Free Cash Flow

₹12 Cr

Cash generative

Generates cash even after funding its capex

More Metrics

P/E (Forward)

19.1x

Improving

Below the trailing multiple — the street expects earnings to grow into the price

Operating Margin

-2.0%

Weak

Thin margins leave little room for error

Net Margin

8.0%

Average

Average bottom-line conversion

Current Ratio

2.00

Comfortable

Healthy short-term liquidity

Beta (vs Nifty)

0.17

Defensive

Steadier than the market

52W Range Position

42%

Mid-range

Technical Snapshot

SMA 20 / SMA 50

640.3 / 574.7

Bullish alignment (short > long)

Price vs SMA 200

Above

Long-term uptrend

RSI (14)

37.4

Neutral momentum

Financial Trend (4-Year)

Metric	FY23	FY24	FY25	FY26	3Y CAGR
Revenue	₹731 Cr	₹876 Cr	₹833 Cr	₹988 Cr	+10.6%
EBITDA	₹160 Cr	₹159 Cr	₹155 Cr	₹195 Cr	+6.9%
EBITDA Margin	21.9%	18.2%	18.6%	19.7%	—
PAT (Net Profit)	₹107 Cr	₹97 Cr	₹92 Cr	₹101 Cr	-2.1%
EPS	₹26.46	₹23.94	₹22.65	₹24.7	-2.3%
ROE	12.5%	10.5%	9.3%	9.3%	—
ROCE	16.1%	13.5%	11.2%	11.7%	—
Total Debt	₹8 Cr	₹21 Cr	₹69 Cr	₹87 Cr	+122.7%
Free Cash Flow	₹113 Cr	₹26 Cr	₹145 Cr	₹12 Cr	-53.1%

🟢 Revenue has grown at 10.6% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EBITDA has grown at 6.9% a year over 3 years.

🔴 EBITDA Margin has fallen from 21.9% to 19.7% over 3 years (-2.1 pts).

🔴 PAT (Net Profit) has shrunk at 2.1% a year over 3 years.

🔴 EPS has shrunk at 2.3% a year over 3 years.

🔴 ROE has fallen from 12.5% to 9.3% over 3 years (-3.2 pts).

🔴 ROCE has fallen from 16.1% to 11.7% over 3 years (-4.4 pts).

🔴 Total Debt has grown at 122.7% a year over 3 years.

🔴 Free Cash Flow has shrunk at 53.1% a year over 3 years.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow — FY2026

Total Assets

₹1,474 Cr

Total Liabilities

₹396 Cr

Cash & Equivalents

₹48 Cr

Operating Cash Flow

₹78 Cr

Capex

-₹67 Cr

Shareholding (proxy)

Institutional Holding

7.7%

Insider Holding

23.8%

Corporate Actions

Dividend Rate

₹10

Ex-Dividend Date

28 Aug 2026

Analyst Consensus

Recommendations

1 Buy · 1 Hold · 0 Sell

Target Price (Mean)

₹727.5

+15.6% vs CMP

Target Range

₹630 – ₹825

Peer Comparison

Company	P/E	ROE
TATA CONSULTANCY SERV LT	17.3x	45.6%
INFOSYS LIMITED	15.8x	32.0%
HCL TECHNOLOGIES LTD	20.4x	24.6%
WIPRO LTD	14.5x	15.9%

Recent News

1 positive1 mixed4 general

Protean eGov shares fall 6% despite 19% YoY jump in Q1 revenue. Should you buy, sell or hold?

The Economic Times, 05 AugPrice move

🟡Mixed / dependsA price move, which is not by itself a change in the business. Worth finding the cause before reading it as either good or bad.

* Protean eGov Tech Shares Slide 30% in Two Sessions Amid Heavy Sell-Off

Groww, 15 Mar

Protean eGov shares zoom 20% to hit upper circuit; here's what's happening

Business Today, 21 Sept

Protean eGov Technologies Ltd leads gainers in 'A' group

Business Standard, 21 Sept

Protean eGov Technologies Limited (PROTEAN.BO) stock price, news, quote and history

Yahoo Finance UK, 01 Oct

Protean eGov Technologies Q1 Consolidated Net Profit Drops to ₹5.9 Crore, Revenue Rises to ₹251 Crore

Sahi, 05 AugResults

🟢Potentially positiveReported improvement. Check whether it came from volume, price or a one-off item before treating it as a trend.

Watch Items

Cross-check against the company's latest quarterly filing / investor presentation before acting.

DalalBaazaar Thesis

MiddlingBusiness Quality · Financial Health · Valuation · Risk

WeakGrowth · Profitability

Points for each in the Score ↑

Unremarkable in both directions

A reasonable business at a reasonable price. Nothing here is alarming and nothing is compelling, which usually means the decision rests on things this data cannot see — the industry's direction, management's intent, and what else is available to you. 3 high-severity red flags sit above this conclusion and should be read first.

All 5 tripwires holding · see Key things to watch ↑