• PAT growth: Feroze attributed the reported profit pressure to non-cash ESOP expenses and said consolidated PAT was ₹121.9 crore versus ₹99.8 crore a year earlier, up 22%; the parent company’s PAT growth was almost 24-25%.
• Margin outlook: The company plans to keep PBT above 40%, with margins expected between 40 to 45% over the next 5 years. Rather than maximize operating leverage, it will reinvest in technology, compliance, execution and client research.
• Growth engines: Long-term growth guidance remains 20 to 25%, including 10 to 11-12% from client portfolio returns and another 7 to 12% from business expansion. Drivers include unused RM capacity, increasing wallet share among 14,000 clients, and promoting internally trained RMs.
• Client inflows: Clients added ₹4,100 crore in a quarter, the highest ever, and new clients also reached a September record. Feroze said equity was difficult to sell, but the mutual fund model portfolio returned 11% this year while Nifty did 1%, supporting client confidence.