India's Adani Ports and Special Economic Zone on Thursday flagged slower core earnings growth in fiscal 2027 due to US tariffs and the Iran war, even as the country's top private port operator posted a 20 per cent rise in quarterly earnings on the same basis.
Shares closed 0.9 per cent higher on Thursday, after falling 3.9 per cent to INR1,596.80 earlier in the day.
Global trade flows have been significantly hit due to the US-Iran conflict which began in late February and has led to the blockade of the Strait of Hormuz, a key waterway for world oil trade.
The company's core earnings for 2026 rose 20 per cent to $2.41 billion from a year ago, while revenue climbed 25 per cent to $4.08 billion.
It said it expects core earnings growth of nine per cent to 14 per cent in fiscal 2027, slower than the 20 per cent growth recorded in 2026, and forecasts revenue growth of 11 per cent to 16 per cent.
"Adani Ports' fiscal 2026 volume and revenue growth was boosted by the acquisition of the NQXT terminal, which added about 35 million tonnes or roughly eight per cent to volumes and inflated growth to around 25 per cent," says Deven Choksey, managing director at DRChoksey FinServ.
The company completed the acquisition of The North Queensland Export Terminal (NQXT), an Australian deep-water coal export terminal, in December 2025.
Going forward, growth is expected to normalise due to the high base effect, limited incremental volume from NQXT, and temporary export disruptions from the war, while domestic demand remains resilient, Choksey added.
Adani Ports, which operates 19 ports across four countries said capital spending rose to $2.41 billion in fiscal 2026, exceeding its guidance, but is expected to moderate to $1.26 billion to $1.48 billion in 2027, signalling a return to spending discipline.
"Disciplined capital allocation will ensure that future capital expenditure needs are funded via internal accruals, while preserving flexibility for selective inorganic growth," said Ashwani Gupta, Whole-time Director CEO.
A 13 per cent surge in cargo volumes helped the firm surpass its fiscal 2026 targets, Gupta added.
While the Iran conflict and shipping disruptions could exert margin pressure on shipping companies, ports in Asia are relatively less exposed to the conflict than those in the Persian Gulf.
Shares of Adani Ports have risen about 13 per cent so far this year, outperforming the benchmark Nifty 50 index, which is down roughly eight per cent.
(Reporting by Urvi Dugar and Abhinav Parmar; writing by Chandini Monnappa in Bengaluru; Editing by Ronojoy Mazumdar and Nivedita Bhattacharjee)