Ashish Kacholia’s latest moves: Raising stakes in 3 stocks, one up 244% since listing

In the same quarter, he raised his stake in Stove Kraft, the maker of Pigeon cookers, from 1.74% to 1.92%, and in SME-listed Indo SMC from 3.03% to 3.25%. One lends money, one sells kitchens, one builds boxes for electricity meters. Yet all three are coming off the best numbers they have ever reported. Let us dive in. #1 SG Finserve: Why Kacholia Came Back to a Lender Growing at 98% Incorporated in 1994, SG Finserve spent most of its life as Moongipa Securities, a tiny shell with revenue of Rs 2 cr as late as FY22.

Then the Gupta family of APL Apollo Tubes took charge and turned it into a non-banking lender. When a steel pipe dealer must pay for stock before his own buyers pay him, SG Finserve lends him the gap. Much of this sits inside the APL Apollo network. With a market cap of Rs 4,547 cr, Kacholia's stake is worth about Rs 106 cr at the closing price of Rs 676 on 14th October 2026. FE Stock Insights on WhatsApPGet instant alerts on high-conviction investment themes and fundamental deep dives—direct from Financial Express.Join now Why Kacholia’s June 'Exit' From SG Finserve Was Only a 1-Quarter Dip Kacholia held 1.14% in December 2025, doubled it to 2.37% by March 2026, slipped below the 1% reporting line in June and came back at 2.34% in September.

Since only holders above 1% are named, June does not prove he sold out. September shows he wanted his old size back. The business gave him reasons. In an exchange filing on 1st October, the company said its loan book stood at about Rs 5,694 cr on 30th September, up 98% in a year. Promoters are putting money in, too. Their stake rose from 48.38% in September 2025 to 56.95% in June 2026 as warrants turned into shares.

Financial YearFY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY265Y CAGRRevenue (Rs cr)2241190170334NMFinancing Profit (Rs cr)2125105111172NMNet Profit (Rs cr)21187981128NM Source: Screener.in Financing profit is revenue minus interest and operating costs, the lender's version of EBITDA. NM: not meaningful. A five-year growth rate would mislead, because FY21 belongs to the old shell. Since FY23, the first year of real lending, revenue has grown about 101% a year, financing profit 90% and net profit 92%.

June 2026 quarter profit was Rs 54 cr, up 119%. Why SG Finserve’s Rs 2,704 Cr Debt Load and 10% ROE Demand Caution Growth this fast runs on debt. Borrowings nearly doubled to Rs 2,704 cr in FY26, and interest ate about 40% of revenue in the June quarter. Return on equity was a modest 10% in FY26. It trades at a PE of 29x and about 3 times book value. A 10-year median PE is meaningless, as it was a shell until FY22.

The stock trades at a PE of 29x against a current industry median of 20x. The 10-year median PE for the company is 29x, while the industry median for the same period is 23x The risks are plain. The book leans on one business group and has never lived through a downturn, despite nil bad loans reported in June. The September loan figure is provisional, with Q2 results due around the 16th October earnings call. #2 Stove Kraft: Banking on a 316% Induction Surge Amid LPG Supply Fears Stove Kraft: Banking on LPG Fear-Induced Induction Stoves Sales Incorporated in 1999 by Rajendra Gandhi, Stove Kraft sells cookers, non-stick pans, gas stoves, mixers and induction cooktops under the Pigeon and Gilma brands, along with Black+Decker kitchen appliances under an exclusive India tie-up.

Its market cap is Rs 2,795 cr. Kacholia bought about 5.76 lakh shares in the January to March 2022 quarter, then did nothing for over four years. In the September 2026 quarter, his stake rose from 1.74% to 1.92%, roughly 60,000 more shares. The holding is worth about Rs 54 cr at the closing price of Rs 806 on 14th October 2026. How the West Asia LPG Crunch Drove Record Rs 481 Cr Q1 Revenue What changed is the West Asia war.

In March 2026, fears of an LPG shortage sent households rushing for induction cooktops, and shares of makers such as TTK Prestige rallied. Stove Kraft rode the wave. June 2026 quarter revenue hit a record Rs 481 cr, up 41%. Induction sales jumped 316% to 27% of revenue. Net profit rose 63.5% to Rs 17.1 cr. Management told analysts that demand remains well above pre-war levels, a lasting shift in habits, though the September quarter will grow slower.

Supplies to IKEA, which could reach 5 to 6% of revenue at full scale, begin this quarter. Financial YearFY21FY22FY23FY24FY25FY265Y CAGRSales (Rs cr)8591,1341,2811,3611,4481,60513%EBITDA (Rs cr)114961011211511577%Net Profit (Rs cr)815636343942-12% Source: Screener.in How Stove Kraft Slashed Debt by 68% Despite Falling Net Profits EBITDA here refers to operating profit before other income. The falling profit line needs context.

FY21 profit was flattered by a zero tax rate. Since then, depreciation has risen from Rs 14 cr to Rs 80 cr as the company built capacity and opened 346 stores. FY26 brought a quieter win. Cash from operations hit a record Rs 258 cr, and borrowings fell from Rs 371 cr to Rs 117 cr. At 58x PE, Can Stove Kraft’s IKEA Deal Offset Post-War Normalization? The share price of Stove Kraft is up about 20% in a year, yet its five-year price CAGR is minus 6%.

If induction demand fades as gas supply settles, the market will ask whether this was a habit change or a one-off scare. None of this comes cheap. The stock trades at a PE of about 58x, against a current industry median of roughly 34x. A 10-year median PE is not available, since it listed only in January 2021. Return on capital is a modest 11%. #3 Indo SMC: The SME Meter-Box Maker Up 244% Since Its IPO Incorporated in 2021, Indo SMC makes the tough plastic enclosures that house electricity meters, along with feeder pillars, distribution boxes and current transformers.

Its buyers sit in power distribution, smart metering and industry. It listed on the BSE SME platform in January 2026 at Rs 149 and closed at Rs 513 on 14th October 2026, for a market cap of Rs 1,173 cr. Kacholia was a pre-IPO investor, so his first stake was not a market buy. What is new is the buying since: from 2.46% after listing to 3.03% in June and 3.25% in September, worth about Rs 38 cr. Bengal Finance & Investment, an entity associated with Kacholia, holds another 1.33%.

in EBITDA here refers to operating profit before other income. NM: not meaningful, as the company was set up in FY22. From a near-zero base, a five-year growth rate means nothing. In FY26, sales grew 123%, EBITDA 104% and net profit 88%. Management has guided for FY27 revenue of Rs 450 to 500 cr. In BSE filings, it reported a Rs 66.6 cr order in July and a Rs 31.7 cr order on 5th October. The Missing Cash: Why Indo SMC's Profits Don't Tell the Whole Story The catch: operating cash flow has been negative every year, including an outflow of Rs 35 cr in FY26.

Working capital days rose from 37 to 88. IPO money and debt of Rs 47 cr have filled the gap. At a PE of 36x and 7.6 times book, the price assumes this gets fixed. A 10-year PE history does not exist yet. Why SME Trading Rules and Pre-IPO Lock-Ins Raise Liquidity Risks SME rules add risk. Shares trade in fixed lots, and the IPO lot was 2,000 shares. Results come only twice a year. Several governance rules for main-board firms do not apply.

Volumes are thin, so prices swing hard. And pre-IPO lock-ins unwind in stages, adding supply to a small float. Valuation Reality Check: Are These Returns Sustainable? Line up the three trades and a pattern shows. None of these stocks is cheap. A lender up 84% in a year, a cookware maker at 58 times earnings, an SME far above its IPO price. In each case, Kacholia is backing earnings that are rising now, not a story that might play out later.

That makes the next few months telling. SG Finserve must show a book growing this fast stays clean. Stove Kraft must prove the induction boom outlives the gas scare. Indo SMC must turn profit into cash. Kacholia entered Indo SMC before its IPO, at a price no one gets today. His fresh buys, though, came at market rates like anyone else's. A smart first step would be to add these stocks to a watchlist and follow the coming quarters closely.

Disclaimer Note: We have relied on data from www.Screener.in and www.trendlyne.com throughout this article. Only in cases where the data was not available, have we used an alternate, but widely used and accepted source of information, including filings made available on the BSE website. The purpose of this article is only to share interesting charts, data points and thought-provoking opinions. It is NOT a recommendation.

If you wish to consider an investment, you are strongly advised to consult your advisor. This article is strictly for educative purposes only. Suhel Khan has been a passionate follower of the markets for over a decade. During this period, He was an integral part of a leading Equity Research organisation based in Mumbai as the Head of Sales & Marketing. Presently, he is spending most of his time dissecting the investments and strategies of the Super Investors of India.

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