Cable Stocks: Everyone Is Buying Polycab and KEI, But Has The Market Missed Havells?

Synopsis: While investors continue to chase cable stocks like Polycab and KEI Industries, Havells India is quietly expanding its cable business through capacity additions, margin improvement and investments in higher-value segments. With the stock trading at a lower valuation, is the market focusing too much on others and overlooking this stock? 

India’s cables and wires sector has become one of the strongest themes in the market. The reason is simple. Every major growth area in the economy needs cables. Real estate needs wires. Power transmission needs cables. Factories need cables. Solar projects need cables. Data centres need cables. Railways, metros, airports and commercial buildings also need cables. This is why investors have been aggressively chasing companies that can benefit from India’s electrification and infrastructure cycle.

Havells India, however, has not enjoyed the same market excitement. The stock is currently trading around Rs. 1,165 to Rs. 1,200 with a PE ratio of 43.6x. It has corrected sharply and is down nearly 45 percent from its September 2024 highs. On the other hand, Polycab is trading at a PE ratio of 60.4x and has delivered nearly 120 percent returns since March 2025. KEI Industries has also performed strongly, giving around 130 percent returns since April 2025, and is now trading at a PE ratio of 58.6x. This creates an interesting question. While everyone is looking at Polycab and KEI as cable stocks, Why has the market ignored Havells?

The Business Behind Havells

Havells is not a pure cable company. It is a large electrical and consumer products company with businesses across switchgears, cables, lighting, electrical consumer durables, renewables and Lloyd consumer appliances. This is both its strength and its problem.

In FY26, Havells reported net revenue of Rs. 22,466 crore, compared to Rs. 21,746 crore in FY25, a growth of 3.3 percent. EBITDA stood at Rs. 2,213 crore, compared to Rs. 2,149 crore last year, while profit after tax stood at Rs. 1,705 crore, up 14.5 percent from Rs. 1,489 crore in FY25.

But these headline numbers do not tell the full story. The company had two very different businesses moving in opposite directions. Cables were performing strongly, while Lloyd and summer-linked products were dragging overall performance. This is why Havells has not looked as exciting as other cable names from the outside.

The Cable Business Is Bigger Than Many Investors Realise

The most important part of Havells’ FY26 performance was its cables business. Segment revenue from cables grew from Rs. 7,184 crore in FY25 to Rs. 8,677 crore in FY26, a growth of 20.8 percent. This made cables the largest revenue segment for the company.

The profitability of this segment also improved sharply. Segment profit from cables increased from Rs. 772 crore in FY25 to Rs. 1,138 crore in FY26. Margins improved from 10.7 percent to 13.1 percent. This means the cable business was not just growing in size. It was also contributing better profitability.

This strength continued throughout  the year. In Q1FY26, management said infrastructure and industrial-led demand continued to drive robust growth in cables and wires. The company also announced an additional capex commitment of over Rs. 340 crore in this segment. In Q2FY26, management said cables maintained steady growth momentum, mainly driven by power cables. It also acquired 39 acres of land next to its existing facility in Alwar, Rajasthan, to support expansion.

In Q3FY26, the company again said healthy performance was led by accelerated growth in cables, driven by volume expansion and commodity price inflation. In Q4FY26, cables revenue grew 14 percent year-on-year to Rs. 2,474 crore. Management said the industrial cable segment grew much faster than domestic wires, while domestic wires saw some destocking and a stronger base.

Why Havells Is Expanding So Aggressively

The company is not treating cables as a small side business. It is actively expanding capacity. Management said its underground cable capacity is being doubled from FY24 to FY27. It also said the issue was not the ability to sell, but capacity. This is an important statement because it suggests demand exists, and the company is trying to match that demand with higher production.

Havells is also moving deeper into medium-voltage and high-voltage cables. Management said it already had enough capacity on the low-voltage side, while the major buildup is now happening in medium-voltage and high-voltage cables. This matters because these products are more linked to infrastructure, power distribution, industrial projects and larger electrification opportunities.

The company is also seeing traction in export markets for underground cables. While Havells is still known largely as a domestic brand, this shows that its cable opportunity is not limited only to Indian households. The business is slowly moving towards a stronger industrial and infrastructure profile.

This is where the Havells story starts becoming interesting. If the same cable growth were inside a pure-play company, investors may have reacted differently. But because it sits inside a larger company with Lloyd and consumer durable issues, the cable story is not getting the same attention.

The Lloyd Problem Is Hiding The Cable Story

The main reason Havells has underperformed is Lloyd. FY26 was a difficult year for cooling products. The company faced weak summer demand, high channel inventory and lower production. This impacted air conditioners, fans and air coolers.

Lloyd Consumer revenue declined from Rs. 5,123 crore in FY25 to Rs. 3,948 crore in FY26, a fall of 22.9 percent. The segment also moved from a profit of Rs. 131 crore in FY25 to a loss of Rs. 203 crore in FY26. In Q4FY26, Lloyd revenue declined 19 percent year-on-year to Rs. 1,514 crore. Management said this was due to a strong base last year and delayed summers.

This is why investors may be looking at Havells as a weak consumer appliance story rather than a fast-growing cable story. Lloyd has created a valuation overhang. When investors compare Havells with Polycab or KEI, they see that the other two companies offer cleaner exposure to the cable cycle. Havells, meanwhile, has a strong cable business but also has Lloyd losses, weak summer products and slower overall revenue growth.

However, management is not standing still. The company has commissioned a new refrigerator plant at Ghiloth and launched a refreshed product portfolio. The aim is to position Lloyd as a full-stack home appliances player, not just a seasonal AC brand. If Lloyd losses reduce and non-seasonal appliance categories scale up, the market may start looking at Havells differently.

Solar And Renewables Add Another Layer

Another important part of the Havells story is renewables. In Q1FY26, Havells invested Rs. 600 crore in Goldi Solar to accelerate growth in the renewable sector. Management said this investment will help Havells expand its solar portfolio by leveraging Goldi Solar’s module manufacturing capabilities.

This is not just about selling solar panels. Management explained that renewables can also create demand for allied products such as cables, switchgears and other electrical products. This means solar can become an ecosystem opportunity for Havells. In Q4FY26, the company also recognised a fair value gain of Rs. 283 crore on its Goldi Solar investment.

The Others segment, which includes renewables, grew from Rs. 1,379 crore in FY25 to Rs. 1,727 crore in FY26, a growth of 25.2 percent. In Q4FY26 alone, this segment grew 48.8 percent year-on-year. So, while cables are the main growth engine today, renewables could become a second important growth driver over time.

Has The Market Missed Havells?

The market has rewarded pure cable companies because their story is simple. Polycab and KEI are more direct plays on India’s cable and infrastructure boom. Havells is more complicated. It has cables, switchgears, lighting, fans, appliances, renewables and Lloyd. This makes the investment story less clean.

But that is exactly where the opportunity debate begins. Havells’ cable business is already large, growing fast and improving margins. The company is expanding capacity, moving deeper into underground cables, medium-voltage and high-voltage cables, and investing in future demand areas. At the same time, the stock is trading at a lower PE ratio than Polycab and KEI, and has corrected nearly 45 percent from its highs.

The risk is also clear. If Lloyd continues to remain weak, it can keep pulling down investor sentiment. If copper prices move sharply, the cable business can face stocking and destocking cycles. Competition is also increasing in the cables and wires industry. 

So Havells is not a pure cable bet like Polycab or KEI. But it may be a misread cable story. The market may be focusing too much on Lloyd’s pain and not enough on the scale of the cables business. If cables continue to grow, renewables scale up and Lloyd losses reduce, Havells could start looking very different from today.

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