Elevate Campuses IPO

Incorporated in 2005, Elevate Campuses Limited operates its student accommodation business across India and the United Arab Emirates. As of March 31, 2026, the company's Pre Acquisition Group had a student accommodation capacity of 80,255 students across 15 cities in India and one city in the UAE. Its portfolio included seven owned student accommodation campuses with 20,368 beds across six Indian cities and 14 managed campuses with 55,487 beds.

The company provides operational services covering deal sourcing, site selection, development, asset acquisition, asset repositioning and community engagement, along with community and campus technology services including media coverage of HEIs and community events. It works with institutions including Manipal Academy of Higher Education, Manipal University Jaipur and Meraki Education, and reported an occupancy rate of 89.37% for the Academic Year 2025-26 across its owned portfolio.

Since commencing operations as an independent owner and operator of student accommodation in Financial Year 2018, the company has expanded its owned student accommodation portfolio from 9,153 beds to 20,368 beds as of March 31, 2026. The company is promoted by Genius Bidco Holdings Pte. Ltd. and Genius Rajkot Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd., and had 460 full time employees in its Pre Acquisition Group as of March 31, 2026.

The Elevate Campuses IPO is a bookbuilt mainboard issue aggregating up to ₹2,100 crore, comprising entirely a fresh issue of shares with no offer for sale component. The issue is priced in a band of ₹343 to ₹362 per equity share, with a lot size of 41 shares, and will open on September 23, 2026, closing on September 25, 2026, with listing expected on September 30, 2026 on both the BSE and NSE.

Net proceeds from the fresh issue are earmarked primarily for the acquisition of K12 Entities and Campuses worth ₹1,100 crore, along with repayment of borrowings for the company and four subsidiaries worth ₹750 crore, with the remainder allocated to unidentified acquisitions, strategic initiatives and general corporate purposes. The company has delivered exceptional financial growth, with total income rising from ₹362.61 crore in FY24 to ₹603.39 crore in FY26, and profit after tax growing 249% year over year to ₹173.76 crore, though this coincided with a sharp rise in leverage, with Debt/Equity climbing to 4.98 from 2.71 the prior year.

At the upper price band, the issue is priced at a post issue P/E of 35.11 times FY26 earnings, with a Return on Net Worth of 18.17% and an EBITDA margin of 90.32%, typical of an asset owning education infrastructure platform where most operating costs sit below the EBITDA line. Key strengths cited include an established multi city student accommodation portfolio, diversification into K12 school assets, and institutional backing. Key risks include a substantial increase in leverage tied to recent acquisitions, declining Return on Capital Employed despite margin expansion, and integration risk on the newly acquired K12 assets and international subsidiaries. Investors may find it useful to benchmark this issue against other listed REITs and education infrastructure platforms when evaluating its relative valuation.