Steelman Telecom Limited

Communication Services — Telecom Services · BSE

₹68.00₹0.00 (0.00%)

DalalBaazaar Score

36 / 100

🔴 Weak

Verdict

CAUTION

Risk

Very High

Driven by high debt relative to equity, short-term liabilities exceed short-term assets, the company is currently loss-making.

In simple words: The company is currently losing money, but sales are shrinking. Debt is the main factor to watch.

Decision support, not a buy or sell call.

As of 18 Oct 2026, 6:03 pm

Caution warranted. Multiple fundamental metrics — flagged in red below — point to either valuation stretch, leverage risk, or weakening profitability. This doesn't mean avoid the stock outright, but it does mean the burden of proof is on the growth story to justify the current price.

Understanding the Business

Company site ↗

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

What does this company do?

Steelman Telecom Limited provides telecommunications infrastructure and managed services to telecom operators, original equipment manufacturers, and enterprise customers in India.

IndustryTelecom Services

SectorCommunication Services

Employees3,432

Annual revenue₹230 Cr

How does it make money?

Turns over ₹230 Cr a year. Of every ₹100 of sales, about ₹-3 reaches shareholders as profit, with ₹7 left at the operating level before interest, tax and depreciation. Each of its 3,432 employees supports ₹6.7 lakh of revenue a year, the signature of a people-led business.

EBITDA margin6.6%

Net margin-2.7%

Revenue / employee₹6.7 lakh

Who are its competitors?

The closest listed comparisons in its industry are BHARTI AIRTEL LIMITED, VODAFONE IDEA LIMITED. These are the companies its valuation and returns are measured against elsewhere in this report.

BHARTI AIRTEL LIMITEDP/E 39.8x · ROE 20.2%

VODAFONE IDEA LIMITEDP/E 3.6x · ROE —

What is its competitive advantage?Little sign of one

Returns on capital of -7.6% 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.

ROCE-7.6%

ROE-51.1%

Peer median ROE20.2%

What has been driving growth?

Profit has moved mainly because margins changed, not because the business sold much more. Over 3 years revenue moved +71% while net margin moved -542% 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+71%

Margin effect-542%

DalalBaazaar Score

36/ 100

Weak

Weighted across six categories. Every point is explained below.

✗ Return on equity is negative
✗ ROE has fallen by 24.2 points over the period

Quality vs. Valuation

Company Quality

37/ 100

Weak

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

Valuation

39/ 100

Expensive

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

Weak on business quality and not cheap enough to compensate.

vs. its own history

Not enough price and earnings history

vs. sector peers

Not enough peers with a usable P/E

vs. generic bands

N/A

No P/E — the company is lossmaking

P/E (Trailing)

Not meaningful

P/B

2.30x

EV/EBITDA

8.6x

PEG

—

Dividend Yield

None

What's Good / What's Bad

🟢 What's Going Well2

Margins are improving
EBITDA margin is up from 4.6% to 6.6% over 3 years.
Cash flow has turned positive
Free cash flow moved from negative to positive over 3 years.

🔴 What Needs Attention4

Debt is rising
Total debt is up 67% over 3 years — worth checking what it funded.
Return on equity is falling
ROE has dropped from 2.4% to -21.8% — each rupee of shareholder capital earns less than it did.
Return on capital is falling
ROCE has declined from 5.4% to -7.6% — often a sign of competition or overexpansion.
Short-term liquidity is tight
Current ratio of 0.97 — near-term obligations exceed near-term assets.

Red Flags

5 items require attention · 4 high · 1 watch

🔴Debt has risen sharplyFinancial
Total debt is up 67% over 3 years, from ₹47 Cr to ₹79 Cr.
🔴High leverageFinancial
Debt/Equity of 3.48x — earnings must service borrowings before shareholders see anything.
🔴Thin interest coverageFinancial
Operating profit covers interest only -0.5x — little room if earnings dip.
🔴The company is lossmakingFinancial
Net profit of -₹6 Cr in the latest reported year.
🟡Short-term liquidity is tightFinancial
Current ratio of 0.97 — near-term obligations exceed near-term assets.

Investment Thesis

🟢 Bull CaseWhat could make this work?

Margin expansion has further to run
EBITDA margin has risen from 4.6% to 6.6%. If that holds, profit compounds faster than sales and today's multiple looks cheaper in hindsight than it does now.

🔴 Bear CaseWhat could go wrong?

The debt load needs earnings to hold up
Debt is 5.2x EBITDA. At that level a downturn in earnings turns a manageable balance sheet into a refinancing problem, and lenders get paid before shareholders.
Returns on shareholder capital are falling
ROE has dropped from 2.4% to -21.8%. 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.
Earnings are hard to forecast
Profit has swung sharply from year to year, so any single year — good or bad — is a weak guide to the next. Cyclical earnings deserve lower multiples for that reason.
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.
Several serious flags at once
4 high-severity checks triggered. Individually each has an explanation; together they raise the chance that something structural is wrong rather than a one-off.

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

1Revenue growth stays above 15% a year✓ 19.5% CAGR
Latest reported year was -12.3%. The bar is set below the established compounding rate, so ordinary variation does not trip it.
2EBITDA margin holds above 5%✓ 6.6%
Two points below today's level — enough room for noise, tight enough to catch real compression.
3Debt / EBITDA falls below 3x✗ 5.2x
Already stretched, so this is a reduction target rather than a level to hold. Around 3x is where lenders typically start attaching conditions.
4Interest cover stays above 3x✗ -0.5x
How much operating profit can fall before interest stops being comfortably covered.
5Free cash flow remains positive✓ ₹11 Cr
Profit that never becomes cash eventually stops being profit.

Investment Checklist

4 / 11 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
✓ Short-term technical trend isn't bearish

Price history

Quick Metrics

1 good · 3 neutral · 7 weak

Market Cap

₹66 Cr

Micro Cap

Smaller company — thin liquidity and deep drawdowns are normal here

P/E (Trailing)

Not meaningful

Loss-making

Earnings are negative, so a P/E multiple can't be read here

P/B Ratio

2.30x

Fair

Moderate premium to the company's book value

EPS (TTM)

₹-6.47

Loss-making

Negative earnings per share — the business is losing money

ROE

-51.1%

Weak

Weak capital efficiency

ROCE

-7.6%

Weak

Low return on total capital employed

Debt/Equity

3.48x

High

High leverage

Revenue Growth (YoY)

-12.3%

Shrinking

Sales are contracting

Profit Growth (YoY)

-66.6%

Falling

Profits are shrinking

Dividend Yield

None

No dividend yield reported — usually means no payout, but verify if one was recently initiated

Free Cash Flow

₹11 Cr

Cash generative

Generates cash even after funding its capex

More Metrics

CMP

₹68

ROA

-2.2%

Weak

Assets generate little profit

Operating Margin

1.7%

Weak

Thin margins leave little room for error

Net Margin

-2.7%

Weak

Very little revenue reaches the bottom line

Current Ratio

0.97

Adequate

Adequate, but no real cushion

Beta (vs Nifty)

-0.31

Defensive

Steadier than the market

52W Range Position

30%

Mid-range

Technical Snapshot

SMA 20 / SMA 50

73.9 / 70.9

Bullish alignment (short > long)

Price vs SMA 200

Below

Long-term downtrend

RSI (14)

21.2

Oversold zone

Financial Trend (4-Year)

Metric	FY23	FY24	FY25	FY26	3Y CAGR
Revenue	₹135 Cr	₹220 Cr	₹231 Cr	₹230 Cr	+19.5%
EBITDA	₹6 Cr	₹8 Cr	₹6 Cr	₹15 Cr	+34.7%
EBITDA Margin	4.6%	3.6%	2.7%	6.6%	—
PAT (Net Profit)	₹1 Cr	-₹3 Cr	-₹1 Cr	-₹6 Cr	—
EPS	₹0.96	₹-3.29	₹-1.47	—	—
ROE	2.4%	-8.8%	-4.1%	-21.8%	—
ROCE	5.4%	-15.8%	-12.0%	-7.6%	—
Total Debt	₹47 Cr	₹47 Cr	₹85 Cr	₹79 Cr	+18.7%
Free Cash Flow	-₹46 Cr	-₹8 Cr	-₹38 Cr	₹11 Cr	—

🟢 Revenue has grown at 19.5% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EBITDA has grown at 34.7% a year over 3 years.

🟢 EBITDA Margin has risen from 4.6% to 6.6% over 3 years (+2.0 pts).

🔴 PAT (Net Profit) has turned negative, from ₹1 Cr to -₹6 Cr.

🔴 ROE has fallen from 2.4% to -21.8% over 3 years (-24.2 pts).

🔴 ROCE has fallen from 5.4% to -7.6% over 3 years (-13.0 pts).

🔴 Total Debt has grown at 18.7% a year over 3 years.

🟢 Free Cash Flow has turned positive, from -₹46 Cr to ₹11 Cr.

Balance Sheet & Cash Flow — FY2026

Total Assets

₹135 Cr

Total Liabilities

₹112 Cr

Total Debt

₹79 Cr

Cash & Equivalents

₹14 Cr

Operating Cash Flow

₹14 Cr

Capex

-₹4 Cr

Shareholding (proxy)

Institutional Holding

0.0%

Insider Holding

75.4%

Peer Comparison

Company	P/E	ROE
BHARTI AIRTEL LIMITED	39.8x	20.2%
VODAFONE IDEA LIMITED	3.6x	—

Recent News

1 negative5 general

Steelman Telecom Ltd. Peer Comparison – Compare with Others

Value Research, 30 Aug

Steelman Telecom stake sale in EC Wheels ends subsidiary status

scanx.trade, 25 SeptOwnership

🔴Potentially negativePromoter selling or pledging is a signal worth understanding, though the reason is often personal rather than about the business.

Steelman Telecom Limited (BSE: STML) Approves EC Wheels India Share Transfer

Kalkine India, 25 Sept

Telecom Services Penny Stocks India 2027: 5 Picks

Univest, 17 Sept

Steelman Telecom Ltd. Financials – Balance Sheet, Profit & Loss, Cash Flow

Value Research, 30 Aug

Steelman Telecom shareholders approve director reappointments, warrant issuance

scanx.trade, 19 Sept

Watch Items

Revenue growth is negative (-12.3%) on the latest reported period — check if this is one-off or a trend.
Cross-check against the company's latest quarterly filing / investor presentation before acting.
RSI is in oversold territory — could mean either a bargain or a stock still falling for good reason. Check the 'why' before assuming reversal.

DalalBaazaar Thesis

🔴Business QualityWeak4.7/20

🔴Financial HealthStretched7.1/20

🟢GrowthStrong13/20

🔴ProfitabilityWeak2.5/15

🔴ValuationDemanding5.1/15

🔴RiskHigh3.9/10

Weak on the fundamentals

Poor scores on business quality without a price low enough to compensate. There is no obvious argument for owning this over a stronger company at a similar valuation. 4 high-severity red flags sit above this conclusion and should be read first.

This thesis breaks if

✓Revenue growth stays above 15% a year19.5% CAGR
✓EBITDA margin holds above 5%6.6%
✗Debt / EBITDA falls below 3x5.2x
✗Interest cover stays above 3x-0.5x
✓Free cash flow remains positive₹11 Cr