Rs 2,200 Crore In Hand, Rs 30,000 Crore Ahead: Astra Microwave's Next Growth Phase May Hinge On Defence Tech Shift

Astra Microwave is building visibility through its order book while positioning for a larger opportunity pipeline tied to long-term defence and space spending.

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Astra Microwave Products Ltd. is positioning its business around electronic warfare and defence electronics, with an order book of Rs 2,226 crore and visibility on a larger opportunity pipeline over the next four years.

The company designs and manufactures electronic components and systems operating at radio and microwave frequencies, which support defence and space applications. These systems help detect and track aircraft, drones and missiles, while also enabling electronic warfare tools that jam signals, identify threats and secure communication networks.

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The company has also built a presence in the space segment through long-standing work with the Indian Space Research Organisation over more than two decades. It now plans to develop and launch basic satellites.

This places Astra within a segment that is seeing increased deployment in defence systems, while also linking its growth to long-term government spending and programme execution cycles.

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Financials And Visibility

Astra reported its highest financial performance in the first nine months of FY26. Revenue rose 5% year-on-year to Rs 675 crore on a consolidated basis. Defence contributed about 82% of revenue, followed by exports at 12%, meteorological at 3.4% and space at 2.6%.

Ebitda increased 15% to Rs 171 crore, while margin expanded to 25.4% from 23.2% a year earlier. Net profit rose 9% to Rs 87 crore. The company attributed the performance to revenue mix and execution.

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The company expects revenue of Rs 1,150 crore in FY26, implying 10% growth, with Rs 675 crore already achieved in the first nine months. The order book provides nearly two years of revenue visibility.

Defence public sector units and Defence Research and Development Organisation labs account for Rs 1,477 crore of the order book. The company has also completed price negotiations for contracts worth about Rs 550 crore, which it expects to convert into orders by March 2026.

For FY27, management expects revenue growth of about 15% and new order inflows of around Rs 1,500 crore. The pipeline includes orders linked to QRSAM, electronic warfare systems such as Nayan, Medhas, Samudrika and Dharashakti, along with export orders of Rs 100–125 crore and meteorology orders of about Rs 50 crore.

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Growth Pipeline And Strategy

Astra evaluates its business over three- to four-year cycles due to long development timelines in defence and aerospace. Management expects growth to accelerate beyond FY27, with higher scale in FY28 and FY29.

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It estimates a total addressable market of Rs 25,000–30,000 crore over the next four years and expects to secure Rs 8,000–10,000 crore in orders. This could translate into sales of more than Rs 7,500 crore over the same period.

The company is also changing its export mix. It has moved away from build-to-print contracts and is focusing on products with its own design. Export revenue fell to 11% in FY25 from 31% in FY24 as a result of this shift. Management expects export volumes to increase as production orders for these products scale.

Astra exports radar components to Israel, the United States and Singapore. Its joint venture with Rafael Advanced Defence Systems, where it holds 51%, manufactures software-defined radios, electro-optics and signal intelligence systems. The joint venture has secured two orders worth over Rs 300 crore and has an order book of about Rs 456 crore. It expects revenue of more than Rs 350 crore in FY26 and over Rs 400 crore in FY27.

India recorded defence exports of Rs 23,622 crore in FY25, and the government has set a target of Rs 50,000 crore by 2029. The company expects this to support demand.

Astra is also moving towards system-level manufacturing. It plans to increase the share of revenue from systems to 50% over the next three to five years, from 15% in FY25.

To support this shift, the company plans to split its business into two listed entities. Astra Space Technologies will house the space, meteorology and hydrology businesses, while the existing entity will focus on defence and aerospace and continue to hold joint ventures. The company targets completion of the restructuring by Q1 FY28.

At Rs 891 per share, the stock trades at about 53 times earnings, close to its five-year median of 55 times. It trades in line with Bharat Electronics and Zen Technologies, and below Data Patterns.

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