Core4 Engineers Limited IPO

01At a glance

Core4 Engineers IPO date, price band and lot size

• Price band: ₹88 to ₹93 a share, from BSE's issue page; the prospectus leaves the price blank (RHP p.134).
• Lot size: 1,200 shares, from BSE's issue page. An individual bid must be for at least two lots and above ₹2.00 lakh (RHP p.12), so the smallest bid is 2,400 shares, ₹2,23,200 at the upper band (our arithmetic).
• Dates: anchor bidding on October 22, 2026; the issue opens on October 23, 2026 and closes on October 27, 2026 (RHP p.3).
• Size: a fresh issue of up to 58,94,400 shares and no offer for sale (RHP p.1); ₹54.8 crore at the upper band and ₹51.9 crore at the lower band (our arithmetic, RHP p.1).
• Who gets the shares: up to 7,20,000 shares are reserved for the market maker and 51,74,400 form the net issue (RHP p.84); of the net issue not less than 15% is for non-institutional bidders and not less than 35% for individual bidders (RHP p.3), the rest for qualified institutions.
• Lead manager and others: Socradamus Capital Private Limited is the sole book running lead manager and Purva Sharegistry (India) Private Limited the registrar (RHP p.97), Mansi Share and Stock Broking Private Limited the market maker (RHP p.104) and Infomerics Valuation and Rating Limited the monitoring agency (RHP p.101).

What the company does: engineering, procurement, construction and commissioning (EPCC) work in four lines, water and wastewater schemes, railway electrification and station works, power lines and substations, and automation (SCADA) systems, plus electrical panels and compact substations made at its Mysuru factory (RHP p.195, RHP p.197).

Who pays it: mostly private contractors who hand it parts of larger government projects; private-sector customers were 67.66% of FY26 revenue and government customers 32.34% (RHP p.37). Sub-contracting work was 67.67% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.50). Customers are not named in the concentration table (RHP p.43).

Why it is raising money: ₹40.5 crore for working capital and ₹4.1 crore to complete the purchase of land and a building in Mysuru for a factory and office, with the rest for general corporate purposes (RHP p.119).

How fast it has grown: revenue from ₹33.5 crore in FY24 to ₹91.3 crore in FY26, and profit after tax from ₹2.9 crore to ₹12.4 crore (RHP p.88); our arithmetic puts the yearly growth at about 65.2% for revenue and 107.0% for profit (our arithmetic, RHP p.88).

The one thing to understand: the jump in FY26 came almost entirely from one kind of work in one state, and it has not yet turned into cash. Water and wastewater work rose from 25.38% to 67.65% of service revenue (RHP p.41), Karnataka was 85.65% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.39), operating cash flow was negative in every year shown (RHP p.89), and trade receivables were ₹101.5 crore at June 30, 2026 (RHP p.59).

02The business, in plain words

What Core4 Engineers does

The business began as a partnership firm, Core4 Engineers, registered in Mysore in July 2014 (RHP p.96). It became Core4 Engineers Private Limited on February 03, 2022 and Core4 Engineers Limited, a public company, with a certificate dated April 23, 2025 (RHP p.96).

What it does, by service line (RHP p.195, RHP p.197, RHP p.205):

• Water and wastewater: water treatment plants, sewage and effluent treatment plants, pumping stations and pipelines, built for water boards and town councils or as a sub-contractor to bigger firms.
• Railway electrification and infrastructure: 25 kV overhead electrification, traction substations, foot over bridges, platform extensions and station electrical work, for zonal railways and contractors.
• Power lines and substations: substations and lines up to 220 kV and 11 kV feeders.
• Automation and SCADA: control systems that let a water board or railway watch and run pumps and substations from one screen.
• Panels: high-tension and low-tension electrical panels and compact substations up to 2.5 MVA, made at two sheds in Hootagalli Industrial Area, Mysore (RHP p.197, RHP p.205).

A water board, railway division or main contractor needs a scheme built → it awards Core4 Engineers a contract after a tender, or hands it a part of a larger contract → the company designs the work, purchases pipes, cables and equipment, makes the panels itself and hires labour and sub-contractors on site → it is paid in stages as the customer certifies the work done.

The company says that in almost all its service projects about 20% of the project value is electrical panels (RHP p.203). It bid for 233 tenders in FY24, 261 in FY25 and 189 in FY26 (RHP p.47). It had 90 full-time employees at March 2026 and 62 at June 30, 2026, against 179 at March 2025 (RHP p.292).

Earnings equation: Revenue ≈ value of contracts held × share executed and certified in the year. The order book stood at ₹285.8 crore at the date of the prospectus (RHP p.39), about 3.1 times FY26 revenue (our arithmetic, RHP p.39, RHP p.88). The prospectus does not give a margin by project or by service line.

03Where the money comes from

By service, ₹ crore (RHP p.41, RHP p.200):

Product revenue was ₹2.9 crore, 3.17% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.200).

By customer type, share of revenue (RHP p.37):

• Private sector 30.34% in FY24, 43.57% in FY25, 67.66% in FY26 and 88.59% in the three months to June 2026.
• Government 69.63%, 56.43%, 32.34% and 11.41% over the same periods.
• Work done as a sub-contractor was 27.34% of FY24 revenue and 67.67% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.50).

By state, share of revenue (RHP p.39):

• Karnataka 40.06% in FY24, 43.17% in FY25, 85.65% in FY26 and 95.01% in the three months to June 2026.
• Andhra Pradesh fell from 21.77% in FY24 to nil in FY26, and Tamil Nadu from 17.33% to 3.56%.
• All ongoing projects are in Karnataka (RHP p.38).

Core4 Engineers customers: how concentrated the revenue is

Source: RHP p.42. The largest customer brought ₹38.6 crore of FY26 revenue (RHP p.42). Customers are not named, as the company calls this commercially sensitive (RHP p.43). The list of completed projects names Sree Subha sales as the employer on ten water supply projects completed between March and June 2025, worth ₹42.0 crore together (our arithmetic, RHP p.224). The company says it has not lost any customer in the last three years (RHP p.43). Read from the filing: revenue depends on a few customers, more so each period, with the top ten at about nine in every ten rupees in the latest quarter.

04The growth record

Core4 Engineers financials: revenue, profit and margins

Source: RHP p.86, RHP p.88, RHP p.89, RHP p.136; borrowings are long-term plus short-term borrowings (our arithmetic, RHP p.86). The three-month figures are not annualised.

Source: RHP p.136.

Our arithmetic over FY24 to FY26 (RHP p.88, RHP p.136):

• Revenue grew about 65.2% a year (our arithmetic, RHP p.88).
• EBITDA grew about 92.2% a year (our arithmetic, RHP p.136).
• Profit after tax grew about 107.0% a year (our arithmetic, RHP p.88).
• EBITDA margin rose 522 basis points, so 14.8% → 20.0% rounded (RHP p.136); PAT margin rose 491 basis points.

What sits around the record:

• Size: revenue went ₹33.5 cr → ₹91.3 cr from FY24 to FY26 (RHP p.88), and profit after tax ₹2.9 cr → ₹12.4 cr (RHP p.88). FY25 revenue was close to FY24 (RHP p.88).
• Cash: operating cash flow was −₹10.8 crore in FY26 (RHP p.89), and negative in each of FY24, FY25 and the June quarter (RHP p.89); over FY24 to FY26 the business used ₹32.8 crore against profit after tax of ₹19.1 crore (our arithmetic, RHP p.88, RHP p.89).
• Customers' dues: trade receivables were ₹75.4 crore at March 2026 and ₹101.5 crore at June 30, 2026 (RHP p.59). Receivable days rose from 53 in FY24 to 223 in FY26 (RHP p.136), and the working capital cycle from 100 days to 240 days (RHP p.136).
• Other income was ₹0.45 crore in FY26, about 2.7% of profit before tax (our arithmetic, RHP p.88), almost all of it interest (RHP p.354).
• Customers: the largest customer was 42.3% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.42) and the top ten 77.6% (RHP p.42). Karnataka was 85.7% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.39), and sub-contracting work 67.7% (RHP p.50).
• Debt: borrowings were ₹31.6 crore at March 2026 (our arithmetic, RHP p.86) against cash and bank balances of ₹7.6 crore (RHP p.86); net debt was about 1.3× FY26 EBITDA (our arithmetic, RHP p.86, RHP p.136). Return on capital employed was 37.8% in FY26 on the company's measure (RHP p.136), and debt to equity 1.0 times (RHP p.136).
• Loans from the promoters: unsecured loans from promoters and directors were ₹2.3 crore at June 30, 2026, repayable on demand (RHP p.62, RHP p.349).
• Bank guarantees: ₹6.6 crore given on the company's behalf at June 30, 2026, plus ₹4.3 crore of capital contracts not yet provided for (RHP p.91).
• Cases against promoters: 7 tax matters, ₹0.52 crore in all (RHP p.62); section 23 has the detail.
• The issue: a fresh issue of ₹54.8 crore at the upper band (our arithmetic, RHP p.1) and no offer for sale (RHP p.1), with ₹40.5 crore of the proceeds for working capital (RHP p.119).
• Valuation at the upper band: a market capitalisation of ₹192.4 crore (our arithmetic, RHP p.106) and a P/E of 15.6× on FY26 profit after tax on the enlarged share count (our arithmetic, RHP p.88, RHP p.106). The one listed peer the prospectus names, K2 Infragen Limited, traded at 3.97× (RHP p.135), so the issue is +292% against that peer median (our arithmetic, RHP p.135). Section 16 has the detail.
• Industry: construction and infrastructure in the fixed list (RHP p.148).

05What the growth is made of

Revenue rose by ₹57.2 crore from FY25 to FY26, or 167.41% (RHP p.354). The record splits into two years:

• FY24 to FY25: revenue rose by ₹0.71 crore, which the company calls a marginal increase (RHP p.356).
• FY25 to FY26: water and wastewater revenue rose from ₹8.7 crore to ₹59.8 crore (RHP p.354), railway revenue from ₹16.1 crore to ₹24.8 crore (RHP p.354), and automation and SCADA fell from ₹8.1 crore to ₹2.2 crore (RHP p.354). Karnataka revenue rose from ₹14.7 crore to ₹78.2 crore (RHP p.354).

Physical work done, as the company counts it (RHP p.199):

• Sewage treatment capacity executed: 0.5 MLD in FY25 and 3.81 MLD in FY26.
• Water treatment plant projects completed: 3 in FY24, 5 in FY25 and 10 in FY26.
• Railway electrification completed: 80 km in FY24, 20 km in FY25 and none in FY26.

The order book's contract value was ₹147.1 crore at March 2024, ₹166.0 crore at March 2025 and ₹435.6 crore at March 2026 (RHP p.39). The prospectus does not give revenue by project or margins by service line, so the increase cannot be separated into more projects, larger projects and price.

On costs, materials consumed rose 220.75% in FY26 to ₹48.8 crore (RHP p.354), and liquidated damages of ₹1.09 crore were charged in FY26 against nil in FY25 (RHP p.355).

06Earnings quality

The one that needs explaining is customers' dues. Trade receivables were 222.43% of revenue for the three months to June 2026 and 82.60% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.59). Of gross receivables of ₹102.3 crore at June 30, 2026, ₹15.3 crore had been outstanding for more than one year from the due date (RHP p.37, RHP p.349).

In the June 2026 quarter, debtors in the books were ₹102.0 crore while the statement given to State Bank of India showed ₹29.4 crore, and Bank of Baroda's statement showed nil against ₹82.2 crore in the books; the auditors record the reason as an internal reconciliation issue (RHP p.54, RHP p.55). Short-term provisions rose from ₹4.6 crore at March 2025 to ₹32.3 crore at June 2026 (RHP p.86).

Inventory is entirely work in progress on projects (RHP p.349).

07The balance sheet

At March 2026 (RHP p.86):

• Long-term borrowings ₹2.3 crore and short-term borrowings ₹29.3 crore; cash and bank balances ₹7.6 crore, most of it bank deposits (cash and cash equivalents were ₹0.39 crore, RHP p.90).
• Trade receivables ₹75.4 crore, work in progress ₹14.5 crore.
• Property, plant and equipment ₹2.1 crore; net worth ₹31.1 crore.

At June 30, 2026 total borrowings were ₹40.6 crore (RHP p.349). Of the short-term borrowings of ₹35.0 crore, bank overdraft and cash credit were ₹24.2 crore, an unsecured loan from a non-bank lender ₹5.0 crore, unsecured loans from other parties ₹2.6 crore and loans from related parties ₹2.3 crore, repayable on demand (RHP p.349). Six unsecured business loans taken from non-bank lenders in FY26 carry interest of 17.00% to 19.00% a year (RHP p.349). Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan and Hosahalli Appagigowda Savitha have given personal guarantees to State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda (RHP p.273).

Contingent items at June 30, 2026 were ₹6.6 crore of bank guarantees and ₹4.3 crore of capital contracts not provided for (RHP p.91). The company says its projects usually need bank guarantees of about 5% of contract value (RHP p.44).

After the issue: at the upper band the fresh issue adds ₹54.8 crore before expenses (our arithmetic, RHP p.1), against net worth of ₹31.1 crore at March 2026 (RHP p.86). No proceeds are earmarked for repaying loans (RHP p.119).

08What the money is for

Core4 Engineers IPO objects: what the money is for

Source: RHP p.119; percentages are our arithmetic on a fresh issue of ₹54.8 crore (RHP p.1). Both amounts are to be spent in FY27 (RHP p.120). General corporate purposes may not exceed 15% of the gross proceeds or ₹10.0 crore, whichever is lower (RHP p.120); issue expenses are left blank (RHP p.131).

• Working capital: the company projects working capital of ₹100.2 crore for FY27, against ₹45.0 crore at March 2026, with ₹40.5 crore from the issue (RHP p.125, RHP p.126). It plans for receivable days to fall to 128 in FY27, from 309 in FY26 on its standalone working capital basis (RHP p.126, RHP p.127); these are the company's own projections. Part of the money is for margin deposits that back bank guarantees and letters of credit (RHP p.129).
• Property: land and an industrial building at Plot Q-140, Industrial Estate, Hebbal, Mysore, bought from M/s. P.S. Electricals under an agreement of sale dated October 20, 2025 for ₹4.4 crore; ₹0.30 crore was paid as an advance from internal accruals and stamp duty and registration of about ₹0.34 crore will also come from internal accruals (RHP p.121, RHP p.123). The promoters and directors have no interest in the property (RHP p.123).

Into the business the whole issue: up to 58,94,400 new shares, ₹54.8 crore at the upper band (our arithmetic, RHP p.1). To selling shareholders nothing: there is no offer for sale (RHP p.1).

09Who is selling

Core4 Engineers IPO offer for sale: who is selling

No one. The issue is a fresh issue only, and the offer for sale is marked not applicable (RHP p.1). No part of the proceeds will be paid to the promoters, the promoter group or the directors (RHP p.133).

10Promoters

The promoters are Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan, managing director; Hosahalli Appagigowda Savitha, chairman and executive director; Mahadevappa Tejus, whole-time director; and Anala, a non-executive director (RHP p.295). The prospectus records that Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan and Anala are spouses and that Hosahalli Appagigowda Savitha is the mother of Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan (RHP p.279). Mahadevappa Tejus was identified as a promoter in April 2023 and Anala in May 2024 (RHP p.296).

• Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan, aged 36, holds engineering and M.Tech degrees and has about eleven years in EPC, railway, automation and power projects; a partner in the firm from 2014 to 2022 (RHP p.278, RHP p.295).
• Mahadevappa Tejus, aged 34, was project manager of the firm from 2017 to 2022 and now runs projects and procurement (RHP p.278, RHP p.295).
• Other businesses: Nandi Enterprise, a partnership firm of Mahadevappa Tejus, is in the promoter group (RHP p.298) and supplies the company (section 24). Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan left the partnership Core4 Manufactures on its dissolution in December 2024 (RHP p.297).

Promoter economics (RHP p.107, RHP p.111, RHP p.112):

• The founding shares were allotted at ₹10 against the partners' capital accounts in 2022, and the rest came from the 4:1 bonus issue in December 2025 (RHP p.107).
• Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan holds 73,90,000 shares, Hosahalli Appagigowda Savitha 44,00,000, Mahadevappa Tejus 2,10,000 and Anala 1,40,000 (RHP p.117, RHP p.118).
• Anala transferred 3,72,000 shares to Samir Arvind Thakker at ₹53.76 in July 2024 (RHP p.112).
• None of the promoters' shares is pledged (RHP p.112).

Pay: in FY26 Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan was paid ₹0.39 crore and Mahadevappa Tejus ₹0.13 crore (RHP p.281); Hosahalli Appagigowda Savitha draws no remuneration (RHP p.281). The current terms allow up to ₹7.00 lakh a month and ₹5.00 lakh a month respectively (RHP p.280). Promoters and directors had lent the company ₹2.3 crore at June 30, 2026 (RHP p.62).

11Who already owns it

Core4 Engineers promoter holding before and after the IPO

Source: RHP p.117, RHP p.116; the "others" line is our arithmetic. The company had 44 shareholders (RHP p.116).

If the whole issue is allotted, the shares rise to 2,06,83,245 (RHP p.106) and the promoters would hold about 58.7% (our arithmetic, RHP p.106, RHP p.111), down from 82.09% (RHP p.111).

Outside holders came in through private placements at ₹536 a share between October 2024 and January 2025, ₹107.20 after the bonus (RHP p.107, RHP p.140). The weighted average cost of the primary issues is ₹107.20 a share and of secondary transactions ₹5.18 a share (RHP p.141). No fund or company holds 1% or more; Amartara Plastics Private Limited holds 1,00,000 shares, below 1% (our arithmetic, RHP p.109).

12What changed just before the IPO

• Private placements: 1,57,769 shares at ₹536 between October 25, 2024 and January 07, 2025 (RHP p.107); the money was not kept in a separate bank account as the law requires, and the company has applied to regularise this (RHP p.45).
• Auditor: ARSV and Associates resigned on January 31, 2025, citing professional pre-occupation, and L U Krishnan & Co. became statutory auditors (RHP p.98, RHP p.99).
• Public company: converted with a certificate dated April 23, 2025 (RHP p.96).
• Subsidiary: Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan and Mahadevappa Tejus left Core4 Energy Private Limited on August 19, 2025 by share transfer (RHP p.297); it is now a wholly owned subsidiary (RHP p.281).
• Management: a chief financial officer and company secretary were appointed on September 08, 2025, and two independent directors joined in October and November 2025 (RHP p.292, RHP p.274, RHP p.278).
• Bonus issue: 4 new shares for each share held, 1,18,31,076 shares, on December 29, 2025 (RHP p.107).
• Pay: directors' remuneration went from ₹0.24 crore in FY25 to ₹0.52 crore in FY26 (RHP p.355), and the managing director's ceiling was raised to ₹7.00 lakh a month (RHP p.280).
• Customer mix: private customers rose from 30.34% of revenue in FY24 to 88.59% in the June 2026 quarter (RHP p.37), and Karnataka from 40.06% to 95.01% (RHP p.39).
• Filings: the FY24 consolidated accounts were not filed with the Registrar of Companies because of an error in the form; the company has applied to correct it (RHP p.48, RHP p.49). Several half-yearly MSME returns were filed between 513 and 1,244 days late (RHP p.63, RHP p.64).

13Capacity and expansion

The prospectus states that its operations are not a manufacturing process with a defined installed capacity, so installed capacity and utilisation are not disclosed (RHP p.252). Output by count (RHP p.199):

The factory has two sheds in Hootagalli Industrial Area, Mysore (RHP p.205). The issue funds ₹4.1 crore towards land and an existing building at Hebbal, Mysore, meant to house panel making, SCADA and RTU assembly and the corporate office (RHP p.121, RHP p.122). The prospectus does not give the floor area of the new building or a date for moving in.

14Market size and industry structure

Core4 Engineers industry: market size and growth

The industry chapter is taken from a report by Ken Research Private Limited titled "India's Railway EPC, Drinking Water & Waste Water Treatment, Transmission & Distribution, Power Distribution Panels & Compact Sub-Stations, and SCADA & Automation Systems Market", published on February 19, 2026, which the company commissioned and paid for for this issue (RHP p.148). Every figure below is the commissioned report's, as reproduced in the prospectus.

As claimed: the report sizes five markets for FY25. Drinking water and wastewater treatment was ₹99.9 thousand crore (RHP p.158), railway EPC ₹30.4 thousand crore (RHP p.155), transmission and distribution EPC ₹36.0 thousand crore (RHP p.162), power distribution panels and compact substations ₹144.5 thousand crore (RHP p.164) and SCADA and automation ₹7.7 thousand crore (RHP p.168).

The part that is addressable: the company's FY26 revenue came mostly from water supply schemes and railway works in Karnataka and nearby states (RHP p.39, RHP p.41). The report does not size any of these markets for Karnataka or for sub-contracted packages, which is where most of the company's work sits.

What the company is today: FY25 revenue of ₹34.2 crore (RHP p.88) was about 0.03% of the FY25 drinking water and wastewater market alone (our arithmetic, RHP p.88, RHP p.158).

Size over time: the water and wastewater market grew from ₹60.5 thousand crore in FY20 to ₹99.9 thousand crore in FY25, about 10.6% a year, and the report projects ₹169.6 thousand crore by FY30 (RHP p.158). Railway EPC grew from ₹16.2 thousand crore in FY20 at about 13.4% a year, and the report projects ₹50.5 thousand crore by FY30 (RHP p.155). The report projects transmission and distribution EPC at ₹60.1 thousand crore by FY30 (RHP p.162). These projections are the report's, not newboard's.

Segments: within water, the public sector was 80% of the FY25 market, sewage and water piping the largest plant type at ₹33.0 thousand crore, and drinking water treatment plants 28.0% (RHP p.159, RHP p.160, RHP p.161). Within railways, composite infrastructure works were 51.0% of FY25 (RHP p.155). Within panels, low-tension panels were 35.1% at ₹50.7 thousand crore and compact substations 14.8% at ₹21.4 thousand crore (RHP p.165).

What drives demand: government schemes. The report names the Jal Jeevan Mission, with its outlay raised to ₹67,000 crore and extended to 2028, AMRUT 2.0 and Namami Gange for water (RHP p.188); a railway capital outlay above ₹2.6 lakh crore in the FY26 budget estimates, station redevelopment under the Amrit Bharat scheme and full electrification for railways (RHP p.154, RHP p.172); and the Revamped Distribution Sector Scheme, with an outlay of ₹3.03 lakh crore, for power distribution (RHP p.175).

Structure: the report counts over 200 railway EPC firms, mostly Indian, with global firms such as Siemens, Alstom and Hitachi in signalling (RHP p.190); 250 to 300 active players in transmission and distribution (RHP p.190); 120 to 150 in SCADA (RHP p.191); and says over 70% of panel makers are small and unorganised (RHP p.178). Zonal railway tendering has opened work to smaller regional firms (RHP p.187). The competitors it profiles are Trimurthi HITECH Co. Private Limited, SN Enviro-Tech Private Limited and K2 Infragen Limited (RHP p.191, RHP p.192).

Inputs and trade: the main inputs are steel, copper, aluminium, cement and cables; the report cites copper prices moving about 22% year on year (RHP p.180). The report does not discuss imports or exports for these markets.

Rules: railway work follows the Railways Act, Railway Board manuals and the Indian Railways general conditions of contract (RHP p.181); water work follows the Water Act, 1974 and pollution board discharge norms (RHP p.182); panels follow BIS standards IS 8623 and IS 14786 and CPRI type tests (RHP p.184). The company holds a Super Grade Electrical Contractor licence from the Karnataka electrical inspectorate valid to May 31, 2028 (RHP p.382).

What the chapter says can go wrong: payment delays and weak finances at power distribution companies, design changes and slow approvals, short work windows on live railway tracks, land and clearance delays for water plants, price swings in steel and copper under fixed-price contracts, dependence on tenders with thin margins, and cyber risks for SCADA systems (RHP p.176, RHP p.177, RHP p.178, RHP p.179, RHP p.180).

15Competitive position

Core4 Engineers competitors

Source: the Ken Report as reproduced at RHP p.192. The report's FY25 figures for Core4 Engineers differ from the restated ones: restated FY25 revenue was ₹34.2 crore and profit ₹3.8 crore (RHP p.88).

The company's own case rests on work across several fields, panels made in-house, in-house testing and an experienced team (RHP p.134). It says it voluntarily runs eight CPRI tests on its panels (RHP p.204). Its trademark applications are still under examination (RHP p.384). Work is won mainly on price once a bidder qualifies (RHP p.47), and two government contracts were terminated in 2024 and 2025 (RHP p.38).

16Peers the company named

Peers named in the offer document: K2 Infragen Limited (RHP p.135).

Core4 Engineers listed peers

Source: RHP p.135, RHP p.139; the peer's P/E is at its price of ₹41.85 against basic EPS of ₹10.53 (RHP p.135). The industry table on the page before prints the peer group P/E as 4.07 (RHP p.134). K2 Infragen's FY25 revenue was about 4.3 times Core4 Engineers' (our arithmetic, RHP p.139), its working capital cycle 122 days against 353 (RHP p.139). The report describes K2 Infragen as working in roads and bridges, power lines, railways, water supply and buildings in nine states (RHP p.192).

17Valuation at the issue price

Core4 Engineers IPO valuation and P/E

At the upper band of ₹93, with the full 58,94,400 new shares added to 1,47,88,845 existing shares (RHP p.106):

Source: RHP p.88, RHP p.106, RHP p.134, RHP p.135; our arithmetic. At the lower band of ₹88 the market capitalisation is ₹182.0 crore (our arithmetic, RHP p.106). Against the June 2026 net asset value per share of ₹25.18 the price is 3.7 times (our arithmetic, RHP p.135).

Enterprise value on the shares before the issue, with March 2026 borrowings of ₹31.6 crore and cash and bank balances of ₹7.6 crore, is ₹161.5 crore, 8.8 times FY26 EBITDA of ₹18.3 crore (our arithmetic, RHP p.86, RHP p.136). After the issue, book value including the gross fresh issue would be about ₹85.9 crore, and the market capitalisation at the upper band 2.2 times that (our arithmetic, RHP p.86).

The one peer the prospectus names traded at 3.97 times earnings (RHP p.135). At the upper band the issue is priced at 15.6 times FY26 profit on the enlarged share count, about 292% above that figure, and 11.1 times FY26 diluted EPS on the prospectus's own share basis.

18Risks, in plain words

Core4 Engineers IPO risks

Customers' dues → trade receivables were ₹101.5 crore at June 30, 2026, 222.43% of that quarter's revenue (RHP p.59) → ₹15.3 crore was more than a year past due (RHP p.37) → every year shown had negative operating cash flow (RHP p.89).

Customers → the top ten were 93.90% of revenue in the June 2026 quarter and the largest 31.57% (RHP p.42) → the largest was 42.31% of FY26 revenue (RHP p.42).

Sub-contracting → 67.67% of FY26 revenue came from sub-contracts (RHP p.50) → payment depends on the main contractor being paid by the project owner (RHP p.41).

One field, one state → water and wastewater were 87.07% of service revenue in the June 2026 quarter (RHP p.41) and Karnataka 95.01% of revenue (RHP p.39) → the company says its record at this scale of water work is limited (RHP p.41).

Debt and guarantees → borrowings were ₹40.6 crore at June 30, 2026 (RHP p.349), some at 17.00% to 19.00% interest (RHP p.349) → bank guarantees of ₹6.6 crore can be invoked if a contract goes wrong (RHP p.91).

Terminated contracts → Southern Railway ended two contracts, in 2024 and 2025 (RHP p.38) → both are in arbitration and the outcome is uncertain (RHP p.38).

Compliance → placement money not kept in a separate account (RHP p.45), FY24 consolidated accounts not filed (RHP p.48), late filings with the Registrar of Companies (RHP p.63, RHP p.64) and bank statements that did not match the books (RHP p.55).

People → employee attrition was 255% in FY26 and headcount fell from 179 to 62 between March 2025 and June 2026 (RHP p.292).

Issue-specific → the objects have not been appraised by any bank or financial institution (RHP p.120), and general corporate purposes and issue expenses are not yet quantified (RHP p.120, RHP p.131).

19Litigation and regulatory matters

Cases against Core4 Engineers and its promoters

The prospectus counts, against the company, 8 tax matters and 1 material civil matter totalling ₹0.71 crore; against the promoters, 7 tax matters totalling ₹0.52 crore; by the company, 2 material civil matters totalling ₹18.6 crore; and no criminal case against the company or its promoters (RHP p.62).

By the company: the joint venture Core4 Engineers DPIPL JV, in which the company holds 49%, claims ₹17.0 crore before an arbitral tribunal in Chennai after Southern Railway ended a contract for foot over bridges at five stations in May 2025; the company separately claims ₹1.5 crore in arbitration in Karnataka after Southern Railway ended a coach watering contract at Mangalore in April 2024 for alleged slow progress (RHP p.374). Both are pending.

Civil: a losing bidder's writ petition in the Karnataka High Court challenges the award of a coach watering contract at Kengeri to the company, worth ₹2.3 crore; the company has asked to be removed from the case (RHP p.63, RHP p.374).

Indirect tax: the Karnataka commercial taxes enforcement wing summoned the company's books for FY2020-21 to FY2024-25 in February 2025 and inspected its premises in March 2025; the company has asked for the proceedings to be dropped (RHP p.373).

By a promoter: Mahadevappa Tejus has filed a cheque-dishonour complaint over ₹0.05 crore lent to an individual (RHP p.376).

The promoters face no disciplinary action by SEBI or the stock exchanges (RHP p.375).

20Related-party transactions

Source: RHP p.94. At June 30, 2026 the company owed Anala ₹1.97 crore and Agrahara Chamaraje Gowda Abhinandan ₹0.28 crore, and owed Nandi Enterprises ₹1.66 crore as a trade payable (RHP p.95). The company also lends to and sells to its joint venture with Niranjan Enterprises (RHP p.93).

What appeared or disappeared: Core4 Energy Private Limited became a wholly owned subsidiary after the promoters transferred their shares in August 2025, and its purchases from and loans to the company appear from FY26 (RHP p.92, RHP p.297). Core4 Manufacturers, owned by key managerial personnel, repaid ₹0.16 crore in FY25 and has had no transactions since (RHP p.94).

21What the offer document does not say

Customers are not named in the concentration table, and the prospectus does not say whether the employer named on the completed water projects is the largest customer. Margins by service line and by project are not disclosed. The share of the order book that comes from sub-contracts, and from which main contractors, is not given. Short-term provisions of ₹32.3 crore at June 2026 are not explained in the pages read.

The reason the debtor statements given to banks were far below the books is described only as an internal reconciliation issue. No date is given for moving into the new Hebbal building, and its area is not stated. The amount for general corporate purposes and the issue expenses are left blank.

22Five questions for management

1. Who are the largest customers in FY26 and the June 2026 quarter, and how much of the ₹101.5 crore of receivables at June 2026 is owed by the largest one?
2. Why did the debtor statements given to State Bank of India and Bank of Baroda in June 2026 show ₹29.4 crore and nil against ₹102.0 crore and ₹82.2 crore in the books?
3. What share of the ₹285.8 crore order book is sub-contracted work, and what are the payment terms with the main contractors?
4. What do the short-term provisions of ₹32.3 crore at June 2026 consist of?
5. What was the gross margin on water and wastewater work in FY26 compared with railway work?

1Sources and cited facts

This study was read from 1 document the company filed. The 168 figures it cites are listed under the document each came from, with the page and the sentence as printed.