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By Dalal Street Investment Journal (DSIJ)
Debt reduction can strengthen a company's balance sheet when backed by healthy cash flows. Here are five companies that reported lower borrowings on March 31, 2026, than a year earlier, along with a look at how their debt profile changed during FY26.
Debt is often looked at as a negative, but that is not always the case. Companies borrow money for the purpose of expansion of business, setting up new plants or acquisition of other firms. The use of such borrowed funds can significantly increase the firm's profitability.
The critical issue here is not the presence of debt in a firm but its ability to handle it comfortably.
When a company's borrowings go down, analysts generally see this as a healthy sign. Lower debt means the company has less interest to pay. It leaves more cash for expansion, new projects or even dividends. It also reduces financial risk, especially when business conditions become difficult.
With this thing in mind, we have considered companies whose borrowings were lower on 31st March 2026 than they were in the previous year.
Here are 5 such companies that reported a reduction in debt during FY26.
Bharti Airtel is the second-largest telecom company in the world by customer base. The company serves nearly 666 million customers across multiple countries. In India, it offers 4G and 5G mobile services, broadband, fixed line, DTH, digital payments and enterprise solutions.
Total borrowings fell to ₹1,95,412 crore on March 31, 2026, from ₹2,13,642 crore a year earlier.
The reduction was mainly driven by lower short term borrowings, which almost halved during the year. The company's net debt-to-equity ratio improved to 1.1 times on March 31, 2026, from 1.8 times on March 31, 2025.
| Particulars (₹ crore) | March 31, 2025 | March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Borrowings | 2,13,642 | 1,95,412 |
| Long term Borrowings | 1,04,864 | 1,00,085 |
| Short term Borrowings | 43,448 | 21,586 |
| Lease Liabilities | 65,330 | 73,740 |
Source: Screener
Hindustan Unilever is India's largest FMCG company. It owns a wide portfolio of brands across home care, beauty and personal care, foods and refreshments.
The company maintained a very low debt profile during FY26. Total borrowings declined to ₹1,478 crore on March 31, 2026, from ₹1,648 crore in the previous year.
Almost the entire borrowing consists of other borrowings, while long term and short term borrowings remained nil.
| Particulars (₹ crore) | March 31, 2025 | March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Borrowings | 1,648 | 1,478 |
| Long term Borrowings | 0 | 0 |
| Short term Borrowings | 0 | 0 |
| Lease Liabilities | 1 | 0 |
| Other Borrowings | 1,647 | 1,478 |
Source: Screener
HCL Technologies is among India's leading IT services companies. It provides software services, engineering solutions, infrastructure management, digital transformation and business process services to clients across the world.
Total borrowings stood at ₹5,215 crore on March 31, 2026, compared with ₹6,276 crore a year earlier. The sharpest decline came from short term borrowings, which dropped from ₹2,221 crore to ₹122 crore.
Despite these changes, the company's debt-to-equity ratio remained stable at around 0.1 times on both March 31, 2025, and March 31, 2026.
| Particulars (₹ crore) | March 31, 2025 | March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Borrowings | 6,276 | 5,215 |
| Long term Borrowings | 70 | 37 |
| Short term Borrowings | 2,221 | 122 |
| Lease Liabilities | 3,985 | 5,056 |
Source: Screener
UltraTech Cement is the biggest producer of cement in India. It belongs to the Aditya Birla Group. The company keeps on adding its organic capacity and is aiming for a cement capacity of 242.5 MTPA by FY28.
In spite of expansion, the company experienced a slight decrease in its borrowings during FY26. Borrowings of the company decreased to ₹23,755 crore as on March 31, 2026, compared to ₹24,102 crore in the previous year.
The net debt-to-equity ratio of the company improved to 0.21 times as on March 31, 2026, compared to 0.24 times in the previous year.
| Particulars (₹ crore) | March 31, 2025 | March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Borrowings | 24,102 | 23,755 |
| Long term Borrowings | 15,781 | 15,019 |
| Short term Borrowings | 7,250 | 7,762 |
| Lease Liabilities | 1,071 | 974 |
Source: Screener
ONGC stands for Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, which is India's biggest government-owned oil and natural gas exploration organisation. This company operates in the upstream energy sector in India, as well as downstream and overseas operations.
The company decreased its borrowings in FY26. The borrowings fell to ₹1,74,316 crore by March 31, 2026, from ₹1,87,817 crore previously.
Both long term and short term borrowings moved lower during the year.
| Particulars (₹ crore) | March 31, 2025 | March 31, 2026 |
|---|---|---|
| Total Borrowings | 1,87,817 | 1,74,316 |
| Long term Borrowings | 98,474 | 93,823 |
| Short term Borrowings | 55,082 | 48,232 |
| Lease Liabilities | 34,261 | 32,261 |
Source: Screener
Lower debt is usually a positive development, but it should not be the only factor while evaluating a company. Investors should also look at earnings growth, cash flows, return ratios, capital allocation and future expansion plans.
Source: Dalal Street Investment Journal (DSIJ), BSE, CNBC, Reuters
SEBI Registered Research Analyst (INH000006396).
Founded in 1986, Dalal Street Investment Journal (DSIJ) brings decades of experience in India’s equity markets. DSIJ's research combines fundamental analysis with price action, guided by disciplined risk management and capital preservation. They follow a structured, data-driven approach designed to help investors and traders make informed decisions beyond short-term market noise.
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