Defence stocks experienced significant selling pressure on Monday, with the Nifty India Defence index declining 3% to an intraday low of 8,725.45. According to reports from The Economic Times, 17 of the index's 19 constituents were trading in the red, highlighting broad-based weakness across the defence sector. Only Solar Industries gained 4% and Bharat Electronics rose 0.32%, while all other major defence stocks witnessed declines. The broader market sentiment was weighed down by Nifty trading with cuts of over 1% (around 250 points lower) at 23,405 and Sensex falling 1.06% (800 points lower) at 74,457 as of 9:20 am, with all sectors except IT trading in the red.
Mtar Technologies led the decline, tumbling 6%, followed by Cochin Shipyard which fell 5.77% to its intraday low of ₹1,475. As reported by The Economic Times, other major losers included GRSE (-4.71%), Zen Technologies (-4.05%), Aequs (-3.97%), Data Patterns (-3.33%), AxisCades Technologies (-3.08%), Hindustan Aeronautics (-2.85%), Mishra Dhatu Nigam (-2.83%), BEML (-2.52%), Mazagon Dock (-2.49%), Astra Microwave Products (-2.49%), Bharat Dynamics (-1.92%), Dynamatic Technologies (-1.84%), Apollo Micro Systems (-1.71%), Paras Defence (-1.39%), and Bharat Forge (-1.28%). The broader market pressure was evident with Nifty Realty leading losses with cuts of over 2%, followed by Media, Auto, and PSU Bank sectors.
Cochin Shipyard shares tanked 7.5% following disappointing Q4 FY26 results that failed to impress investors. According to reports from The Economic Times, the Kerala-based company reported a consolidated net profit of ₹276 crore in Q4 FY26, marking a 4% decline from ₹287 crore in the same period last year. The company's revenue from operations slipped 16% to ₹1,484 crore in the January to March period compared to ₹1,758 crore in the year-ago period. However, EBITDA gained 16% to ₹309 crore with EBITDA margin expanding to 20.8% from 15.1% in the previous year. The board recommended a final dividend of ₹1.5 per equity share for FY26, subject to shareholder approval.
Hindustan Aeronautics Limited reported a consolidated net profit of ₹4,196 crore in Q4 FY26, marking a 5.5% growth from ₹3,977 crore in the same period last year. As reported by The Economic Times, the Bengaluru-based company's revenue from operations advanced 2% to ₹13,942 crore compared to ₹13,700 crore in the year-ago period. Net income increased 5% to ₹15,093 crore from ₹14,351 crore on a year-on-year basis. However, EBITDA declined 4% to ₹5,058 crore as against ₹5,294 crore in the corresponding period last year, with EBITDA margin contracting to 36.3% from 38.6% in the previous year.
The decline in defence stocks reflects investor reaction to latest earnings announcements, with most companies showing mixed results amid broader market pressure. According to Morgan Stanley analysts in a report dated May 12, 2026, earnings growth is turning after a six-quarter mid-cycle slowdown and is likely to accelerate further, driven by reflationary policies and strong capex trends in energy, defence, semiconductors, and data centres. The current market weakness is compounded by escalating US-Iran tensions as President Trump issued stark warnings and Iranian officials signalled readiness to respond to any military action, creating additional uncertainty for investors across all sectors.
