LEMONTREE
Large CapLemon Tree Hotels Limited
Consumer
Lemon Tree Hotels Limited (LTHL) is one of India's largest hotel chains, owning/leasing/operating/franchising hotels across upscale, upper-midscale, midscale, and economy segments. It operates 131 hotels with 11,811 rooms in 80+ cities across 7 brands, with a growing pipeline of 137 upcoming properties.
One read, four checks
75+ is strong, 60-74 is usable, 45-59 is mixed, and below 45 needs caution. These are research lenses, not buy/sell instructions.
Mixed fundamentals, management trust is acceptable, price trend argues for patience, and recent execution is consistent.
Fundamental lens: valuation, quality, growth, balance sheet, and cash flow.
low confidence · 0/0 claims checked
Timing lens: price trend and sector relative strength.
Rolling lens: recent quarterly delivery, not the latest single-result score.
Quarter ended 31 Mar 2026
Bad · 22/100margin compression · Rev +10% YoY · PAT +7% YoY
| Metric | This quarter | YoY | QoQ |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue | ₹416 Cr | +9.8% | +2.5% |
| EBITDA | ₹215 Cr | +5.9% | +4.9% |
| Operating margin | 52.0% | -200 bps | +200 bps |
| PAT | ₹116 Cr | +7.4% | +41.5% |
| PAT margin | 27.9% | -62 bps | +768 bps |
NDF means not disclosed in the current structured filing feed. It is intentionally not treated as zero.
Where growth can come from, and what can break the case
Lemon Tree Hotels reported its best-ever FY26 and Q4 FY26, with strong revenue and PAT growth. Full-year revenue rose 13% YoY to ₹1,452.7 Cr, and PAT grew 19% to ₹288.3 Cr. Q4 revenue increased 11% YoY to ₹419.5 Cr, with PAT up 8% to ₹116.5 Cr. EBITDA margins contracted due to renovation, GST, and tech investments.
The company achieved record FY26 and Q4 results across key financial and operational metrics, driven by strong demand. While EBITDA margins contracted due to strategic investments and GST changes, management expects these impacts to reduce, leading to future margin expansion. The asset-light growth strategy and robust pipeline support continued expansion.
Network Revenue by Hotel Type (FY26)
Latest issuer-disclosed distribution across 2 reported categories.
Asset-Light Expansion
Opened 20 managed and franchised hotels with 1,523 rooms and signed 55 managed and franchised hotels with 4,912 rooms in FY26.
Robust Pipeline
Combined operational and signed pipeline inventory stands at 22,581 rooms across 268 hotels, with 10,770 upcoming rooms in 137 hotels.
Premiumization Strategy
All current future supply is planned under the upper upscale Aurika brand, which remains largely unaffected by GST changes.
Favorable Market Dynamics
Indian hospitality market demand consistently outpacing supply in the mid-market segment where the company operates.
FY26 Managed & Franchised Openings
20 hotels with 1,523 rooms were opened in FY26, including 1 hotel with 43 rooms in Q4 FY26.
FY26 Managed & Franchised Signings
55 hotels with 4,912 rooms were signed in FY26, including 9 hotels with 646 rooms in Q4 FY26.
Owned/Leased Hotel Pipeline
Aurika, Shimla (91 rooms, FY27); Aurika, Shillong (165 rooms, FY28); Aurika, Nehru Place, Delhi (~572 rooms, FY30); Aurika, Varanasi (47 rooms, FY30).
Favorable Structural Market Position
Indian hospitality market continues to be in a favorable structural position, with demand consistently outpacing supply in the mid-market segment.
Reduced Debt & Cost of Debt
Total borrowings brought down to ₹1,500 Cr from ₹1,699 Cr YoY; cost of debt fell to 7.42%, down 115 bps YoY.
Value-Accretive Re-structuring
Re-structuring is value-accretive for public shareholders, increasing effective ownership in Fleur from 45.8% to 57.5% and total attributable EBITDA by 8%+.
EBITDA Margin Contraction
FY26 margins impacted by 580 basis points due to significant step-up in renovation expenditure, investments in technology, and GST-related changes.
GST Impact
GST-related change had a half-year impact in FY26 and will have a full-year impact going forward, though expected to decrease as ARR grows.
Global Geopolitical Tensions
Intermittent global headwinds including renewed geopolitical tensions in the Middle East and aviation disruptions impacted the year.
Execution of Pipeline
Converting the significant pipeline of 10,770 rooms into operational assets and generating fee income requires effective execution.
Sustained Margin Pressure
Renovation, technology investments, and GST changes are currently suppressing EBITDA margins, and the full impact of GST is yet to be realized.
Competition in Asset-Light Model
Lemon Tree aims to be the 'operator of choice' for hotel owners, implying competition for management and franchise contracts.
What management said, and what results must prove
Issuer guidance and extracted claims are tracked against later reported outcomes. Treat these as management statements, not IndiaPulse forecasts.
YoY comparison is crucial for assessing overall growth and performance trends, especially in a seasonal business like hospitality. QoQ comparison is important for tracking sequential momentum in operational metrics like occupancy and ARR, and for understanding the immediate impact of cost changes.
Occupancy (%)
FY26: 73.5% (up 186 bps YoY); Q4 FY26: 78.5% (up 96 bps YoY).
Average Room Rate (₹)
FY26: ₹6,875 (up 8% YoY); Q4 FY26: ₹7,457 (up 6% YoY).
Net EBITDA Margin (%)
FY26: 48.1% (down 126 bps YoY); Q4 FY26: 52.0% (down 198 bps YoY).
Management / Franchise Fees from 3rd Party Hotels
FY26: ₹73.9 Cr (up 23% YoY); Q4 FY26: ₹20.6 Cr (up 29% YoY).
Expected Margin Expansion
Management expects renovation, technology, and GST expense heads to reduce to ~3.7% of revenue by FY28 and onwards, leading to EBITDA margin expansion.
Focus on Aurika Brand
All current future supply is being planned under the upper upscale Aurika brand, which is largely unaffected by the GST change.
Asset-Light Growth Strategy
Lemon Tree will expand management contracts across sub-segments and Tier I/II/III markets, leveraging its scalable fee-based model.
Fleur's Expansion Flexibility
Fleur Hotels will have flexibility to partner with various hospitality brands and is the exclusive development partner for owned-hotel opportunities from Lemon Tree Group.
Numbers and claims to verify in the next filings
| Checkpoint | Current evidence | What to verify next |
|---|---|---|
| EBITDA Margin Impact from Investments | 5.8% of revenue (FY26) from renovation, tech, and GST. | Reduction of these expense heads to ~3.7% of revenue by FY28 and onwards. |
| Managed/Franchised Rooms Pipeline Conversion | 9,895 rooms in pipeline under managed/franchised contracts. | Timely conversion of pipeline rooms into operational status, driving fee income growth. |
| Cost of Borrowing | 7.42% as of March 31, 2026. | Continued reduction in cost of debt and overall borrowings. |
Verification checkpoints are IndiaPulse research interpretation, not investment advice.
Trend score and candlestick chart
42NeutralSMA20 -15.8% / mo · near 52W low
Technical chart
LEMONTREEweekly · 1Y-22.1%Technical trend read
Bearish setupTrend is weak — long-term trend unclear. RSI 38.
- SMA20 falling (~18.7% over last month) — short-term momentum negative.
- RSI(14) at 38 — falling, no extreme reading.
- MACD above signal but histogram contracting — bullish momentum cooling.
- 39% off 52W high · 8% above 52W low.
Mechanical read from the price + indicator series above. Not a recommendation — technical setups can reverse without warning, especially around earnings and macro events.
Valuation, score drivers, trust methodology, financials, and peers
Use these sections after reviewing the decision summary, latest result, thesis, management accountability, and technical timing above.
Fundamental score breakdown
FAIR VALUEWhy this score?
Top U-Score contributors and drags from the latest stored fundamentals.
Positive drivers
- FCF yield is supportive at 4.4%.
- Piotroski is strong at 7/9.
- Fair-value margin of safety is positive at 51.8%.
Main drags
- Balance sheet is weaker at 1/15; verify the latest quarterly trend.
- Valuation is weaker at 14/30; verify the latest quarterly trend.
- Quality is weaker at 10/20; verify the latest quarterly trend.
Consumer valuation: PE/PEG and brand-quality premium
Consumer franchises can deserve higher multiples, but only when growth quality supports them.
Stored run vs live recompute
This shows the stored score trend when snapshots exist, and also compares the latest stored nightly score with a live recompute from current fundamentals and price.
Score history
12 stored score snapshots. Latest stored move: +0 points.
Factor attribution
Trust asks: does management behaviour match later outcomes? Higher is better, but confidence and evidence depth matter as much as the number.
Healthy Trust: Claim history is still being built. It ranks around the 67th percentile of the scored universe and 66th percentile within Consumer. Main check: balance sheet trust is weak at 53/100.
Healthy Trust Lite: Promoter pledge is zero. Key concern: Promoter holding is only 22.3%.
Generally investable credibility. Look for weak sub-scores before increasing position size.
overall median 67 · Consumer: 66th pctile, median 67 · Large: 43rd pctile, median 74
163 documents indexed, but claim history is not strong enough yet.
0 claims extracted · No contradicted claim yet
How to read this Trust Score
Healthy Trust · low confidenceRead Trust alongside U-Score, result consistency, and technical trend. A cheap stock with weak Trust needs a larger margin of safety; a high Trust score does not make an expensive stock attractive by itself.
Forensic breakdown
Read low sub-scores as due-diligence warnings, not automatic sell signals.
Trust positives
- ▸Promoter pledge is zero.
- ▸FCF yield is positive at 4.4%.
- ▸5 years of positive FCF.
- ▸4/4 latest quarters had positive YoY revenue growth.
Trust risks
- ▸Promoter holding is only 22.3%.
- ▸Debt/equity is 1.54.
Trust Lite uses financial behaviour only. Prefer claim-tested Trust when enough concall claims have later outcomes.
Intrinsic value
Fundamentals
Valuation
- P/E
- 34.20
- P/B
- 6.08
- EV/EBITDA
- 12.83
- Market Cap
- 8489.00Cr
Profitability
- ROE
- 19.40%
- ROCE
- 14.00%
- ROA
- 6.72%
- Dividend Y
- —
Growth (CAGR)
- Revenue 5Y
- 42.00%
- EPS 5Y
- 32.00%
- Revenue 3Y
- 18.00%
- EPS 3Y
- 29.00%
Balance Sheet
- Debt/Equity
- 1.54
- Interest Coverage
- 4.13×
- Altman Z
- 2.94
- Book Value
- 17.60
Cash Flow
- FCF Yield
- 4.39%
- FCF Positive Y
- 5/5
- OCF
- 542.00 Cr
- EPS TTM
- 2.87
Shareholding
- Promoter Hold
- 22.32%
- Promoter Pledge
- 0.00%
- Momentum 52W
- 9%
Financial History
Updated 9/6/2026
Revenue
₹ CrNet Profit
₹ CrReturn on Equity
%Peers
Business-comparable peers in Consumer — ranked by industry, sub-sector, theme-tag overlap, market cap, and U-Score similarity. Green cells mark the best available peer metric in this table.