BPCL swings to Rs 1,872.70 cr loss as costs outpace revenue
Revenue rose +34.41% YoY, but expenses grew faster, operating margin fell 1.02 percentage points and the tax rate rose 10.78 percentage points.
Filed 22 Jul 2026, 14:40 IST · Bharat Petroleum Corporation Ltd (BPCL)
Key takeaways
- BPCL reported a consolidated net loss of Rs 1,872.70 cr as the tax rate rose 10.40 percentage points QoQ.
- Expenses grew +28.88% QoQ against +27.44% revenue growth, cutting operating margin by 0.81 percentage points to 28.16%.
- The stock fell -2.97% by the next session, versus a 2.29% median absolute move after its previous eight results.
Price around the results
Revenue growth did not prevent a reported loss
BPCL's consolidated revenue increased +34.41% YoY and +27.44% QoQ, but the company reported a pre-tax loss of Rs 3,616.77 cr and a net loss of Rs 1,872.70 cr. The tax rate rose 10.40 percentage points QoQ and 10.78 percentage points YoY, adding to the deterioration in net profit. Other income accounted for -34.54% of pre-tax profit, so it did not provide support while pre-tax profit was negative.
Operating margin narrowed as expenses grew faster
Expenses rose +28.88% QoQ against +27.44% revenue growth, reducing operating margin by 0.81 percentage points; on a YoY basis, costs grew +36.34% against +34.41% revenue growth, cutting margin by 1.02 percentage points. Operating margin declined for a second straight quarter, from 31.77% in Q3FY26 to 28.97% in Q4FY26 and 28.16% in Q1FY27. Even after the decline, BPCL's margin was 12.67 percentage points above the 15.49% median for six reported Energy-sector peers.
The market reaction was larger than BPCL's usual next-day move
The stock fell -1.68% on the results date and -2.97% by the next session. That next-session decline was larger than the 2.29% median absolute move across the previous eight results, when the stock rose five times and fell three times.
Q1FY27 at a glance
Consolidated figures as filed with NSE — cross-checked against an independent source.
| Line item | Q1FY27 | Q4FY26 | QoQ | YoY |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹1,51,277 cr | ₹1,18,701 cr | +27.44% | +34.41% |
| Other income | ₹1,249 cr | ₹951 cr | +31.42% | +66.64% |
| Expenses | ₹1,08,670 cr | ₹84,318 cr | +28.88% | +36.34% |
| Operating profit | ₹42,607 cr | ₹34,383 cr | +23.92% | +29.72% |
| Operating margin (%) | 28.16% | 28.97% | — | — |
| Interest | ₹627 cr | ₹705 cr | -11.09% | -17.27% |
| Depreciation | ₹2,069 cr | ₹2,031 cr | +1.89% | +9.53% |
| Profit before tax | ₹-3,617 cr | ₹8,281 cr | — | — |
| Tax | ₹-1,343 cr | ₹2,213 cr | — | — |
| Net profit | ₹-1,873 cr | ₹5,625 cr | — | — |
| EPS (₹) | ₹-4.38 | ₹13.16 | — | — |
Operating margin of 28.16% compares with a Energy sector median of 15.49% across 6 peers that have reported Q1FY27.
How the stock reacted
| Window | Stock | vs NIFTY |
|---|---|---|
| Results day | -1.68% | -0.88% |
| Next session | -2.97% | — |
Volume on the results session was 1.34× its 20-day average.
What to watch
- Whether operating margin recovers from 28.16% after two consecutive quarterly declines.
- Whether expenses grow slower than revenue after the QoQ gap of +28.88% versus +27.44%.
- Whether the tax rate moves down from 37.13% after rising 10.40 percentage points QoQ.