Dependent industries
Reliance Industries ended 2025 as the biggest gainer in absolute terms. The combined market capitalization of listed Reliance entities rose from around Rs 18.7 lakh crore at end-2024 to nearly Rs 23.4 lakh crore by December 2025, translating into a net addition of around Rs 4.6 lakh crore in one year. These gains were almost entirely driven by Reliance Industries, whose market value rose by over 29% to over Rs 21.2 lakh. crore. Investor sentiment improved thanks to a rare alignment of positive triggers across the business. Its telecom arm, Reliance Jio, regained momentum after a subdued phase in 2024.
Brokers also became more bullish. Jefferies raised its target enterprise value for Jio to $180 billion, citing strong visibility on revenue and EBITDA growth over the next three years.
The oil-to-chemicals sector (O2C) also surprised positively. Improving Asian refining margins and steady demand for transportation fuels prompted analysts such as UBS to predict a sharp recovery in O2C profits by FY27. Together, these factors have revived confidence in India’s most valuable company and offset the weakness of smaller companies like Network18, Just Dial and Hathway, all of which were down double digits for the year.
Adani Group: Recovery with Volatility
The Adani Group added around Rs 1.4 lakh crore in market value in 2025, with its combined market capitalization rising from around Rs 13.2 lakh crore to Rs 14.6 lakh crore. However, performance was uneven.
Adani Power and Adani Ports emerged as standout performers, with gains of over 35% and almost 20% respectively, supported by strong cash flows and improved balance sheets. Adani Energy Solutions also showed a sharp increase. In contrast, Adani Enterprises, Adani Total Gas and AWL Agri Business ended the year in the red, reflecting continued concerns over valuations and growth visibility. Overall, the group’s recovery story continued, but investors remained selective.
Tata Group
The Tata Group emerged as the biggest laggard among India’s top conglomerates in 2025. The combined market capitalization of Tata companies fell from around Rs 31.1 lakh crore at the end of 2024 to around Rs 27.7 lakh crore by December 2025, translating into a net erosion of almost Rs 4.9 lakh crore.
The underperformance was broad-based, although a few large companies did most of the damage. Tata Consultancy Services, which represents a significant portion of the group’s total market value, fell by around 19% over the year. Weak global IT spending, cautious customer budgets and concerns about pricing pressure in the age of artificial intelligence weighed on sentiment. Given TCS’s enormous size, even a modest percentage decline resulted in a significant loss of absolute value.
Another major drag was Tata Motors’ passenger car business, which fell 21% in 2025. Investor confidence took a hit after a cyberattack disrupted the operations of Jaguar Land Rover, the company’s main foreign subsidiary. JLR plays a central role in Tata Motors’ profitability and global story, and the incident raised concerns about its operational resilience and near-term earnings visibility.
However, there was a positive development. Tata Motors completed the demerger of its commercial vehicles business, a move aimed at unlocking value and sharpening strategic focus. The newly listed Tata Motors CV entity now has a market capitalization of around Rs 1.5 lakh crore and is up around 28% since listing, indicating that investors are seeing the benefits of the separation.
HDFC Group
The HDFC group posted steady gains in 2025, with its combined market capitalization rising from around Rs 15.8 lakh crore to Rs 18 lakh crore. The net addition of around Rs 2.2 lakh crore reflected strong performance by HDFC Bank, HDFC Life and HDFC AMC. In a volatile market, the group benefited from its reputation for consistent execution and strong balance sheets.
It is also worth noting that HDB Financial listed on the stock exchanges this year, adding around Rs 63,510 crore to the group’s total market value.
Aditya Birla Group
The Aditya Birla Group added nearly Rs 2 lakh crore in market value during the year. The gains were driven by stocks like Aditya Birla Capital, Hindalco and Vodafone Idea, all of which saw sharp rallies.
L&T, Mahindra and Bajaj: Silent compounding
The Larsen & Toubro group companies added over Rs 1.2 lakh crore in market value, supported by strong execution in infrastructure and financial services. The Mahindra Group also ended the year with a net profit of around Rs 1 lakh crore, driven by Mahindra & Mahindra and its finance arm.
The Bajaj Group – which also includes companies under Rajiv Bajaj and Sanjiv Bajaj – was another clear winner, with its total market capitalization rising by almost Rs 2.5 lakh crore. Bajaj Finance and Bajaj Finserv remained the key drivers, strengthening the group’s strength in financial services.
Godrej, Murugappa and J.S.W
The Godrej Group saw a modest decline in market value, with losses at Godrej Properties and Godrej Industries exceeding gains at Godrej Consumer Products. The Murugappa Group added a small amount of value overall, supported by strong performance in financial services despite weakness in manufacturing businesses.
The JSW Group posted a modest net profit, led by JSW Steel and JSW Holdings, even as JSW Energy and JSW Infrastructure ended the year lower.
Details: Ritesh Presswala
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