Domestic-focused auto companies like Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki India had earlier highlighted continued demand revival in the March 2026 quarter.
The recovery in domestic four- wheeler sales that began in the festive season of Q3FY26 continued in the March 2026 quarter, and that was thanks to earlier GST cuts for small cars and SUVs coupled with lower auto loan rates.
Now let’s turn our attention to Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles and its performance in the March 2026 quarter that was declared on Thursday. The company derives nearly 80% of its quarterly consolidated revenues from its UK-based Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) operations.
Investors on Dalal Street were keen to analyse the key UK-based Jaguar and Land Rover (JLR) operations and how it dealt with multiple headwinds.
For instance, sluggish growth in the key Chinese market, tariff policy of the Trump administration coupled with the normalization of production operations of JLR in Q4FY26.
JLR had faced a cyber- incident in Q3FY26, and it affected production volumes substantially in the quarter.
To get a better understanding of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles performance in the March 2026 quarter, we compared key operational parameters, like growth in vehicle sales, revenue and net profit with Mahindra & Mahindra and Maruti Suzuki India.
Here’s what the data looks like:
How India’s Top Auto Companies Performed in 4QFY26
| Metric | Tata Motors PV (Consol.) | M&M (Standalone) | Maruti Suzuki (Standalone) |
| Revenue Growth (YoY) | 7.2% | 26.2% | 28.2% |
| Net Profit Growth (YoY) | -19% | +53.3% | -7% |
| Operating Margin | 3.5% | 14.1% | 11.7% |
| Raw Material Cost (% of revenue) | 63.1% | 76.4% | 73.4% |
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (formerly Tata Motors)
The JLR Pivot: Overcoming the Q3 Cyber Incident
At its key UK-based JLR operations, the revival in operations from Q3FY26 is visible in the March 2026 quarter – car volumes at JLR were 95,300 units in the March 2026 quarter, down 14.5% y-o-y, however, they were up 61.1% compared to December 2025 quarter.
The company has highlighted a pick-up in demand for its model, Defender, in the March 2026 quarter, and that was thanks to strong marketing activities in different parts of the world.
However, overall car sales volumes at JLR in Q4FY26 were also impacted by the sluggish growth trends in its key Chinese market. Apart from that, the tariff war between USA and European nations also took its toll on JLR.
As a result, revenues at UK-based JLR declined nearly 11% y-o-y to £ 6.87 billion (nearly Rs 88,882 crore) in the March 2026 quarter.
Also, profit before tax and exceptional items at JLR were £458 million (nearly Rs 5,920 crore) in the fourth quarter of FY26, as against £875 million (nearly Rs 11,320 crore) a year earlier.
Consolidated results of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (formerly Tata Motors)
| Consolidated net sales growth (% change y-o-y) | Consolidated net profit growth (% change y-o-y) | |
| March 2026 quarter | 7.2% | -19% (from continuing operations) |
| December 2025 quarter | -25.6% | N / A |
At its smaller Indian operations, the company benefited from the earlier cuts in GST rates and the continued buoyant demand in the post festive season. As a result, its car volumes grew 37.3% y-o-y to 201,800 units in the March 2026 quarter. Its Indian operations, reflected in standalone results, where revenue from operations grew 43.3% y-o-y to Rs 18,598 crore in Q4FY26.
However, a fall in revenues at JLR in Q4FY26, resulted in Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles consolidated revenue from operations barely growing 7.2% y-o-y to Rs 105,447 crore in the March 2026 quarter.
Also, its consolidated operating profit margin declined nearly 350 basis points y-o-y to 3.5% in Q4FY26, and that was owing to higher input costs, especially metals.
Its raw material costs (cost of materials consumed along with purchase of products for sale and changes in inventory of finished goods) as a percentage of consolidated revenue from operations rose 240 basis points y-o-y to 63.1% in the March 2026 quarter.
Higher raw material costs and a decline in JLR’s revenues resulted in the company’s consolidated net profit from continuing activities at Rs 5,878 crore in the March 2026 quarter, a decline of nearly 19% y-o-y.
Mahindra & Mahindra – 23.5% y-o-y jump in SUV sales in Q4FY26
Earlier, Mahindra & Mahindra had highlighted its sales of SUV rose 23.5% y-o-y to 184,000 units in the March 2026 quarter, and that was thanks to strong demand for SUVs and electric models like BE 6, XEV 9E and XEV 9S in the quarter in the review.
Meanwhile, its tractor volumes, where the company also has the largest domestic market share, jumped 36% y-o-y to 120,000 units in the March 2026 quarter, and that was from the momentum of the above normal monsoon last year.
As a result, Mahindra & Mahindra’s standalone revenue from operations rose 26.2% y-o-y to Rs 39,554.1 crore in the March 2026 quarter.
Like other auto sector players, Mahindra & Mahindra had to face higher metal input costs.
However, given Mahindra & Mahindra’s strong position in the SUV and tractor, its standalone operating profit margin basis declined barely 80 points y-o-y to 14.1% in the March 2026 quarter.
Strong growth in SUV and tractor sales helped Mahindra & Mahindra’s standalone net profit rise 53.3% y-o-y to Rs 3,737.3 crore in March 2026
Mahindra & Mahindra’s core auto and farm equipment business is reflected in its standalone quarterly results.
Maruti Suzuki – order backlog of nearly 190,000 pending customer orders at end of FY26
Maruti Suzuki India, the largest domestic player, had earlier highlighted its highest-ever vehicle sales in the March 2026 quarter, 6,76,209 units, a rise of 11.8% y-o-y. Of equal importance, the company’s high margin SUV vehicle sales jumped 14.9% y-o-y to 219,715 units in Q4FY26.
Strong sales of SUVs helped Maruti Suzuki’s total revenue from operations rise 28.2% y-o-y to Rs 52,449.3 crore in the March 2026 quarter. Its total raw material costs (cost of materials consumed and purchase of stock-in-trade) as a percentage of total revenue from operations rose nearly 270 basis points y-o-y to 73.4% in Q4FY26. Maruti Suzuki India also had to face higher metal costs in the March 2026 quarter.
However, Maruti Suzuki’s realisations rose 13.1% y-o-y to Rs 7.75 lakh in the March 2026 quarter helped by strong SUV sales in the quarter under review. As a result, its operating profit margin was broadly flat y-o-y to 11.7% in the March 2026 quarter.
Nevertheless, a 24% y-o-y rise in tax expenses resulted in Maruti Suzuki’s standalone net profit declining nearly 7% y-o-y to Rs 3,590.5 crore in the March 2026 quarter.
Maruti Suzuki India in its results press release has clarified that its sales were restricted by a limitation in its production capacity, with nearly 190,000 pending customer orders at end of FY26.
Maruti Suzuki India’s core automotive operations are reflected in its standalone quarterly results.
Return on Equity (RoE) – which auto company uses capital most efficiently
| Company | RoE |
| Tata Motors PV | 28.1% |
| M&M | 23.9% |
| Maruti Suzuki | 14.5% |
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles has a consolidated RoE of 28.1%, according to Screener.in.
Meanwhile, Mahindra & Mahindra has a standalone RoE of 23.9%.
And Maruti Suzuki has a standalone RoE of 14.5%.
Growth plans of auto companies amidst Middle East crisis
The auto companies are expanding their product portfolio to leverage the stock demand conditions despite the Middle East crisis and the uncertainties created by the Trump administration’s tariff policy.
The first all-electric Jaguar, Type 01, is expected to be launched later this year, marking a major shift toward JLR’s electric vehicle future.
Meanwhile, Mahindra & Mahindra plans to launch models including Mahindra BE.07 and Mahindra XUV 3XO CNG in the current calendar year.
And Maruti Suzuki India is attempting to further strengthen its presence in the SUV segment in calendar year 2026 with models including a 7-seater electric vehicle, and the updated Brezza and Maruti Fronx models.
Investors will be closely watching JLR operations of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles with regards to bringing JLR sales volumes to levels similar to those a year earlier.
For Maruti Suzuki, investors will also be closely monitoring how quickly the company can fulfil its 1,90,000 order backlog at the end of FY26. For instance, Maruti Suzuki’s vehicle sales in April 2026 grew 16.5% y-o-y to 209, 565 units.
Of equal importance, investors will be closely monitoring the trend in key raw material costs for auto companies, and the price hikes planned.
Valuations and investors on Dalal Street
The March 2026 quarter results of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles were declared after the close of Thursday trade.
The Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles stock gained 0.5% to Rs 338.6 on Thursday. The stock has recovered from its 52-week low of Rs 294.2 that was reached on 30 March, 2026.
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles trades on a consolidated P/E of 20.7, according to Screener.in.
M&M trades at a standalone P/E of 24.4 while Maruti Suzuki trades at a standalone P/E of 28.5.
Valuations of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles versus local rivals
| Company Name | P/E ratio |
| Mahindra & Mahindra (standalone) | 24.4 |
| Maruti Suzuki India | 28.5 |
| Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles (Consolidated) | 20.7 |
Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles trades at a valuation lower than local rivals. Readers could add Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles to their watchlist of stocks for 2026, as it prepares to take JLR operations toward a major shift to an electric vehicle future. However, readers will need to pay attention to whether performance matches expectations of Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles going forward.
Disclaimer:
Amriteshwar Mathur is a financial journalist with over 20 years of experience.
The writer and his family have no shareholding in any of the stocks mentioned in the article.
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