Bain Capital-backed Dhoot Transmission plans to raise ₹3,067 crore through an IPO, focusing on expanding capacity and benefiting from the electric vehicle boom, despite concerns over valuation.
Dhoot Transmission’s planned market debut opens on August 10 and runs until August 12, with the Bain Capital-backed automotive wiring harness maker looking to raise ₹3,067 crore through a mix of fresh capital and a share sale by existing owners. The issue includes a ₹1,400 crore primary offering and an offer for sale worth ₹1,667 crore, and the company says it will use most of the new funds to clear debt, add wiring harness capacity and support future acquisitions and other corporate needs.
At the top end of the price band, the offering would value the company at ₹17,816 crore, or about 43 times adjusted FY26 earnings. That puts it broadly in line with listed peers such as Motherson Sumi Wiring and Minda Corporation, though Dhoot’s growth, margins and stronger balance sheet give it a better showing on some operating metrics, according to The Hindu BusinessLine’s analysis. Even so, the publication argued the deal is not cheap, only that investors with a high tolerance for risk and a longer horizon may still find it appealing.
The company sits in a niche that is likely to benefit from the spread of electric vehicles and connected-car features. Dhoot makes wiring harnesses, sensors, controllers, switches and battery packs, with wiring harnesses accounting for most of revenue. The BusinessLine report said it is among the top two suppliers of wiring harnesses for two-wheelers and the market leader in three-wheelers, while Mint and other filings note that the company also serves original equipment manufacturers across automotive and consumer-durables categories.
Recent numbers suggest the business has been growing quickly. According to The Hindu BusinessLine, revenue and net profit grew at compound annual rates of 27 per cent and 17 per cent between FY24 and FY26, while EBITDA margins have been in the 15 per cent to 17 per cent range, ahead of some larger peers. The report also said the company became net debt-free in FY26 after a large equity infusion by Bain’s BC Asia XV unit, which helped reset leverage even as returns on capital eased from earlier highs.
The growth case rests heavily on electrification. The prospectus, as cited by BusinessLine, says wiring content in an electric two-wheeler can be 1.5 times to 2.5 times that of an internal combustion model, while Crisil projections in the document point to faster growth in electric two- and three-wheelers than in the broader market. Dhoot is also pushing into battery packs, power electronics and assisted-driving systems, including a tie-up with Israel-based Ride Vision, and it has completed the acquisition of Multilink. Investors, however, are being urged to read the Bain-related transactions carefully: the private equity group has already invested heavily in the company, and Dhoot has agreed to make an additional payment to Bain Capital Advisors if the IPO closes before the consulting contract expires.
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