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Signpost lights up growth chart with Rs 3,097 lakh profit in H1FY26
MUMBAI: Looks like Signpost India is pointing firmly in the right direction. The outdoor and digital advertising player has posted a robust Rs 3,097 lakh profit for the half year ended September 2025, riding on steady revenue growth and a disciplined financial game plan.
For Q2FY26, Signpost India limited reported revenue from operations at Rs 13,402 lakh, up from Rs 12,970 lakh in the same quarter last year, a year-on-year increase of 3.3 per cent. Sequentially, revenue dipped slightly from Rs 13,765 lakh in Q1FY26, reflecting seasonal adjustments in ad spending. The company’s total income for the half year stood at Rs 27,400 lakh, an 18 per cent jump from Rs 23,246 lakh recorded during H1FY25.
Profit before tax (PBT) for Q2FY26 came in at Rs 2,258 lakh, compared to Rs 2,381 lakh a year ago, while the half-year PBT reached Rs 4,286 lakh, up 16 per cent from Rs 3,703 lakh in H1FY25. After accounting for taxes, Signpost’s profit after tax (PAT) stood at Rs 1,570 lakh for Q2FY26, with a half-yearly PAT of Rs 3,097 lakh, a notable rise from Rs 2,718 lakh in the corresponding period last year.
The company’s operating efficiency remained steady despite a marginal dip in margins, as total expenses rose to Rs 11,267 lakh in Q2FY26 from Rs 10,685 lakh in Q2FY25, driven primarily by higher service costs and depreciation linked to network expansion.
On a broader view, Signpost’s balance sheet continues to reflect resilience and scale. Total assets as of 30 September 2025 stood at Rs 66,247 lakh, a solid increase from Rs 55,502 lakh at the end of FY25. Trade receivables rose to Rs 24,254 lakh, while cash and bank balances reached Rs 6,543 lakh, underscoring strong liquidity.
Equity also saw a healthy boost, climbing to Rs 25,412 lakh compared to Rs 22,339 lakh as of March 2025, supported by stable earnings and controlled leverage. Borrowings stood at Rs 20,253 lakh, indicating the company’s continued focus on balancing expansion with prudent financial management.
Signpost’s cash flow statement paints a picture of solid operational performance net cash inflow from operating activities touched Rs 1,365 lakh, while investments in fixed assets and capital work-in-progress amounted to Rs 2,448 lakh as the company expanded its physical and digital infrastructure.
With earnings per share (EPS) at Rs 2.94 for the quarter and Rs 5.79 for the half year, Signpost India seems to be in no mood to dim its growth lights.
From traditional hoardings to digital out-of-home formats, the company continues to widen its footprint in India’s fast-evolving ad-tech landscape and if its first-half performance is any indication, Signpost is well on course to make the rest of FY26 a bright and busy one.
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Amazon Q1 revenue jumps 17 per cent to $181.5bn, profit soars to $30.3bn
AWS surges 28 per cent while AI bets reshape cash flow and drive future growth
SEATTLE: Amazon kicked off 2026 with a strong first quarter, reporting a 17 per cent year-on-year jump in net sales to $181.5 billion, up from $155.7 billion in the same period last year, as growth across cloud, advertising, and retail continued to gather pace.
Excluding a $2.9 billion favourable impact from foreign exchange, sales still rose a solid 15 per cent, underlining broad-based demand across its businesses.
The company’s cloud arm, Amazon Web Services, remained the star performer, with revenue climbing 28 per cent to $37.6 billion. Operating income for AWS reached $14.2 billion, up from $11.5 billion a year ago, reinforcing its role as Amazon’s profit engine.
Meanwhile, North America sales rose 12 per cent to $104.1 billion, while international revenue increased 19 per cent to $39.8 billion, or 11 per cent excluding currency effects.
Profit growth outpaced revenue. Operating income climbed to $23.9 billion from $18.4 billion last year, while net income surged to $30.3 billion, or $2.78 per share, compared with $17.1 billion, or $1.59 per share, in the first quarter of 2025. A significant boost came from $16.8 billion in pre-tax gains linked to Amazon’s investment in Anthropic.
Cash generation also strengthened, with operating cash flow rising 30 per cent to $148.5 billion over the trailing twelve months. However, free cash flow dropped sharply to $1.2 billion from $25.9 billion, largely due to a $59.3 billion increase in capital expenditure, primarily tied to artificial intelligence investments.
Commenting on the results, Amazon president and CEO Andy Jassy said, “We’re making customers’ lives easier and better every day across all our businesses, and their response is driving significant growth.”
He added that AWS growth of 28 per cent marked its fastest pace in 15 quarters, while Amazon’s chips business crossed a $20 billion annual revenue run rate, growing at triple-digit rates. Advertising revenue also crossed $70 billion on a trailing twelve-month basis, and store unit growth hit 15 per cent, its highest since the tail end of pandemic lockdowns.
Artificial intelligence remained front and centre of Amazon’s strategy. The company deepened partnerships with OpenAI, Meta, NVIDIA and Uber, while expanding its proprietary chip ecosystem including Trainium and Graviton.
Amazon revealed that it has already deployed over 2.1 million AI chips in the past year and plans to roll out more than one million NVIDIA GPUs starting in 2026. OpenAI alone is expected to consume around two gigawatts of Trainium capacity for advanced AI workloads beginning in 2027.
The company also highlighted rapid adoption of its AI services, with Amazon Bedrock processing more tokens in the first quarter than in all previous years combined, and customer spending on the platform rising 170 per cent quarter-on-quarter.
Beyond cloud and AI, Amazon continued to scale its consumer and logistics ecosystem. It delivered more than one billion items via same-day or overnight delivery so far in 2026 and expanded ultra-fast delivery services across multiple global markets. Prime Video also saw strong engagement, including sports streaming growth and box office success for original content like Project Hail Mary, which has grossed nearly $615 million globally.
Looking ahead, Amazon expects second-quarter net sales to reach between $194 billion and $199 billion, representing growth of 16 per cent to 19 per cent year-on-year. Operating income is projected between $20 billion and $24 billion.
Despite macro uncertainties ranging from foreign exchange fluctuations to global economic conditions, Amazon appears to be leaning into its biggest bets yet. With AI investments accelerating and cloud demand holding firm, the company is positioning itself not just for growth, but for what it calls the next big inflection in technology and commerce.
