Bharat Electronics, Hindustan Aeronautics, and Bharat Dynamics declared their Q2 results recently. BEL outperformed others, showing strong growth and a healthy order book of Rs 68,717 crore as of October 1, 2026. While HAL reported a decent quarter, BDL saw growth at the cost of margins. Investors now weigh their options.
Three defence PSU giants namely Bharat Electronics (BEL), Hindustan Aeronautics (HAL) and Bharat Dynamics (BDL) have declared their Q2 results. In the quarter that went by, BEL outperformed the other zero-debt defence majors, surpassing estimates across across verticals. However, HAL reported a decent quarter too, while BDL's growth came at the cost of margins.
All three defence players have a healthy record of delivering dividends, while one of them was also heavy bonus issuer. All three stocks have split once in their trading history. That being said, which is the best bet after Q2?
Bharat Electronics Share Price
BEL share price is above Rs 400 mark to Rs 401 on BSE with a market cap of Rs 2,93,122.13 crore, making it the second largest defence player of the country in terms of market share. Last week, the stock gained by nearly 4%, while its month-on-month performance is higher by 5.6% so far. YTD, the stock is in green. BEL is also closer to its 52-week high of Rs 473.25 apiece. The stock was also among top picks for Diwali Samvat 2083.
Bonus Issue: So far, BEL has delivered three bonuses. The first bonus was of 2:1 in September 2015, followed by 1:10 bonus ratio in September 2017 and 2:1 bonus in September 2022.
Dividends: So far BEL has distributed up to 53 dividends since August 2003, as per Trendlyne data. In the past 12 months, the company paid up to Rs 2.50 dividend per share. The latest was of Rs 0.55 per share in August 2026. Its current dividend yield is of 0.62%.
Stock Split: BEL has split only once in its history and that in March 2017, where its stock price subdivided in the ratio of 1:10. The face value split from Rs 10 to Re 1 each.
In Q2FY27, the Navratna PSU giant achieved revenue of Rs 7,291 crore versus Rs 5,764 crore in the same quarter a year. BEL's PAT surged to Rs 1,541 crore versus Rs 1,286 crore in Q2FY26. As of October 1, 2026, the company has a strong order book of Rs 68,717 crore. In H1FY27, BEL registered a revenue and PAT growth of 25.97% and 14.81% YoY to Rs 12,824 crore and Rs 2,589 crore respectively.
Bharat Dynamics Share Price:
BDL share price ended last week at Rs 1,030.90 apiece on BSE with market cap of Rs 37,788.93 crore. Unlike BEL, BDL shares dropped by nearly 2% on week-on-week performance. The crash extends to over 8.5% on month-on-month basis and 30.4% in year-to-date. The stock's 52-week high and low stood at Rs 1,633.15 apiece and Rs 974.20 apiece respectively.
BDL has no bonus history.
Stock Split: The stock, however, has split once in May 2024 in the ratio of 1:2, where its face value trimmed from Rs 10 to Rs 5 each.
Dividends: So far, BDL has delivered 17 dividends since September 2018, as per Trendlyne data. In the past 12 months, the company paid up to Rs 4.90 dividend per share with latest being of Rs 0.40 per share in September 2026. Its current dividend yield is of 0.48%.
During Q2FY27, BDL posted revenue of Rs 1,644.16 crore versus Rs 1,147.08 crore in Q2FY26. The company's PAT however, stood at Rs 183.48 crore, down from rs 215.88 crore in Q2FY26 but higher from Rs 118.79 crore in Q1FY27.
Hindustan Aeronautics Share Price
HAL shares stood at Rs 4,819.90 apiece on BSE last week on Friday, with market cap of Rs 3,22,342.86 crore, making it the largest defence player. The stock's 52-week high and low stood at Rs 5,149.90 apiece and Rs 3,479.20 apiece respectively. Just like BDL, HAL shares also plunged nearly 2% on week-on-week performance. In a month as well, the stock is down 2%, however, in its year-to-date performance, HAL outperforms both BEL and BDL with nearly 10% gains.
Just like BDL, HAL has not delivered any bonus issues.
Stock Split: HAL has split once in September 2023 in the ratio of 1:2 as well, where its face value subdivided from Rs 10 to Rs 5 each.
Dividends: Since March 2019, HAL has given 16 dividends. In the past 12 months, HAL paid a total of RS 45 dividend per share with latest being of Rs 10 per share dividend in August 2026. Its dividend yield stood at 0.94%.
HAL posted a consolidated revenue of Rs 7,613.25 crore in Q2FY27 versus Rs 6,628.61 crore in Q2FY26. Its PAT surged to Rs 1,935.64 crore versus Rs 1,669.05 crore in Q2FY26.
HAL vs BEL vs BDL Share Price: Which To Buy After Q2 Results?
BEL Share Price Recommendations:
Motilal Oswal has set the highest target of Rs 540 on BEL which signals nearly 35% potential upside ahead. The second highest target is of Rs 530 set by ICICI Direct which still signals over 32.22% potential upside ahead. The consensus recommendation from 32 analysts for Bharat Electronics is STRONG BUY, as per Trendlyne data. Of the total, 25 analysts have recommended STRONG BUY and 6 suggested BUY only 1 analyst has recommended SELL. The average 12-months target price from the consensus is Rs 496.78 apiece, signalling nearly 24% potential upside ahead.
In its note, Motilal said, "Bharat Electronics (BHE)'s 2QFY27 revenue/EBITDA/PAT came in above our estimates. EBITDA margin also remained strong led by project mix. Base order inflows fell 31% YoY as ordering is yet to ramp up meaningfully from the Ministry of Defence (MoD). A large order such as QRSAM, worth Rs 300 billion, is delayed and company is hoping to receive it at the next CCS meeting. BHE is also hopeful of a large order worth Rs 200 billion from next-generation corvettes."
However, it also added that there have been certain delays by the MoD in finalizing projects, but they expect inflows to ramp up in the coming quarters. Accordingly, Motilal maintains it estimates and expect a revenue/EBITDA/PAT CAGR of 15%/14%/15% over FY26-29. They reiterate BUY rating, while raising their target to Rs 540.
HAL Share Price Recommendations:
The consensus recommendation from 27 analysts for Hindustan Aeronautics is BUY, as per Trendlyne. From the total, 17 analysts have advised "Strong BUY" and 6 recommended "BUY". While 1 each analyst have suggested either HOLD, SELL or STRONG. The consensus average target price stood at Rs 5627.70 apiece, indicating a potential upside of 17% in HAL ahead. Analysts at ICICI Direct and Motilal Oswal have recommended target price of Rs 5,900 and Rs 5,820 with BUY rating, hinting between 21-23% potential upside ahead. The highest target price is set by Aditya Birla Capital on HAL to Rs 6,100, which signals nearly 28% potential upside ahead.
In its note, Aditya Birla Capital said, "In our view, the revenue beat provides some comfort on execution, but the sharp operating margin miss and support from other income impacted the quality of earnings. Margin normalisation, execution of the LCA Mk1A delivery schedule, and availability of GE F404 engines remain the key monitorable. We maintain BUY with a TP of Rs 6,150, valuing HAL at 33.0x Sep'28E EPS."
"HAL has already received 14 engines from GE for Tejas Mk1A and we expect Tejas Mk1A deliveries to commence from 4QFY27. Along with this and an implied order book of Rs 2.4 trillion, we expect execution from other projects to scale up further," said Motilal in its note.
BDL Share Price Recommendation:
Unlike its peers, the consensus recommendation from 16 analysts for Bharat Dynamics is HOLD. From the total, 4 analysts suggest STRONG BUY and 3 recommended BUY, while 5 recommended HOLD and 2 each suggest SELL or Strong SELL. The consensus' average target price is of Rs 1288.06 apiece, which signals a potential over 25% upside ahead for BDL. However, Motilal Oswal has kept a target price of only Rs 1,130, which signals nearly 10% potential upside ahead.
Motilal keeps a NEUTRAL rating on BDL. It said, "Bharat Dynamics (BDL) reported a surge in revenue, driven by execution of pending orders of Akash and Astra MK 1, which were delayed over the past 1-2 quarters. This execution has led to a sharp revenue beat vs. our estimate. However, due to a spike in import content, EBITDA margin contracted both YoY and QoQ. Order inflows were strong for BDL in 1HFY27."
Going ahead, with further ramp-up in execution, we expect revenue growth to be strong. However, Motilal's note added, "we now bake in lower margins in our estimates and arrive at our revised TP of INR1,130 based on a slightly lower multiple of 40x two-year forward earnings (vs. 42x earlier), as margin performance continues to disappoint."
