Elevate Campuses IPO (23 Sep-25 Sep) Analysis

India's Largest Purpose-Built Managed Student Accommodation Platform | Mainboard IPO | BSE and NSE

Based on the Red Herring Prospectus (RHP) filed by Elevate Campuses Limited (formerly Good Host Spaces Limited), September 2026

STATUS: OPEN FOR SUBSCRIPTION | Anchor Date: September 22, 2026 | IPO Dates: September 23 to September 25, 2026 | Issue Size: Rs. 2,10,000 Lakhs

Elevate Campuses Limited (formerly known as Good Host Spaces Limited) is India's largest technology-enabled purpose-built managed student accommodation (PMSA) platform. The Company was incorporated in Maharashtra (CIN: U74994MH2005PLC339336) and operates two principal brands: Good Host Spaces, which covers student accommodation, and ScholarZ, which covers K-12 education infrastructure.

The Company is backed by Hillhouse Investment, a global investment firm of significant scale, through two Singapore-incorporated holding entities: Genius Bidco Holdings Pte. Ltd. (holding 80%) and Genius Rajkot Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd. (holding 20%), which together constitute the promoter group.

The Company partners with Higher Education Institutions (HEIs) to build, own, and operate purpose-built student accommodation campuses on or adjacent to university land. It either owns the accommodation assets outright (Owned Portfolio) or manages accommodation on behalf of HEIs under fee-based management agreements (Managed Portfolio).

Students pay accommodation fees directly to the Company, while HEI partners typically provide minimum occupancy guarantees that reduce demand-side risk. As of March 31, 2026, the Company owned 7 student accommodation campuses with 20,368 beds and managed 14 campuses with 55,487 beds across 15 Indian cities.

Key HEI partners include O.P. Jindal Global University (Sonipat), Manipal University Jaipur, Shoolini University, IIIT Bangalore, and IIT Madras. As of June 15, 2026, including contracts signed, total capacity reached 78,542 beds, making the Company approximately 2.1 times the size of its nearest competitor and 6.2 times the size of the third-largest operator in India.

In September 2025, the Company expanded internationally by acquiring two K-12 school assets in Dubai, UAE: Heritage International School (HIS Dubai, rated "Outstanding" by the UK-based British Schools Overseas inspection body) and NLCS Dubai.

These schools are operated by third-party K-12 Operators under lease arrangements. IPO proceeds are planned to be used to acquire 16 K-12 assets in total from Promoter group subsidiaries, which would bring combined capacity to approximately 1,04,341 beds and student seats post-acquisition.

The Company's proprietary technology platform standardises the student living experience and enables centralised management of occupancy, maintenance, payments, and student services across all campuses at scale.

The owned accommodation portfolio contributed 65.74% of FY2026 revenue. The top three HEI partners (O.P. Jindal Global University at 36.97%, Manipal University Jaipur at 20.54%, and Shoolini University at 3.95%) collectively accounted for 61.46% of FY2026 revenues. Fifteen out of the 19 current HEI partners carry NAAC A or better accreditation, lending quality credibility to the institutional partnership base.

IPO BASICS

Document Type	The offer is based on a Red Herring Prospectus (RHP) filed by the Company in September 2026. This is a mainboard IPO listed on both BSE and NSE, with NSE as the Designated Stock Exchange.
Issue Structure	This is a pure Fresh Issue with no Offer for Sale component. The entire issue size of Rs. 2,10,000 Lakhs represents new equity capital, with all proceeds flowing to the Company for its stated deployment objectives. There is no promoter monetisation element in this IPO.
Issue Size	Rs. 2,10,000 Lakhs (fresh capital only). This is one of the largest IPOs by issue size in this offering period. The number of shares to be issued will be determined by the final issue price discovered through the book-building process.
Face Value	Rs. 1 per equity share (not Rs. 10, which is the more common face value). NAV per share as of March 31, 2026 is Rs. 432.62.
Promoters	The promoters are foreign corporate entities: Genius Bidco Holdings Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, holding 80%) and Genius Rajkot Investment Holdings Pte. Ltd. (Singapore, holding 20%). Both are ultimately controlled by Hillhouse Investment, a global institutional investment firm. There are no individual promoters. This is unusual for an Indian mainboard IPO and reflects the institutional private equity-backed nature of the business.
Listing Exchange	BSE Limited and National Stock Exchange of India Limited (NSE). NSE is the Designated Stock Exchange for this issue.
BRLMs	Three Book Running Lead Managers are managing this issue: JM Financial Limited, IIFL Capital Services Limited, and Morgan Stanley India Company Private Limited. The appointment of three BRLMs including Morgan Stanley (a global investment bank) reflects the scale and institutional investor targeting of this issue.
Registrar	KFin Technologies Limited is the Registrar to the Issue.
Bid/Issue Dates	Anchor Investor Bidding Date: September 22, 2026. Public subscription opens September 23, 2026 and closes September 25, 2026.

The structure as a pure Fresh Issue means all Rs. 2,10,000 Lakhs flows to the Company, with the Hillhouse-backed promoter entities not receiving any exit proceeds from this IPO. However, a significant portion of the proceeds (Rs. 1,10,000 Lakhs, or 52.38%) is earmarked for acquiring K-12 assets from Promoter group subsidiaries.

While the proceeds flow to the Company first, they then flow back to Promoter-related entities as the acquisition consideration. This structure means investors should carefully evaluate the valuation basis for the related-party K-12 asset acquisitions, as detailed in Section 3.

The involvement of Morgan Stanley as one of three BRLMs is notable and suggests that the issue is targeting institutional and foreign portfolio investor participation at a significant scale. JM Financial and IIFL Capital Services are established domestic investment banks with strong distribution networks in the Indian institutional market.

KFin Technologies is a leading registrar with the technology infrastructure to manage a large-scale mainboard IPO of this size.

USE OF PROCEEDS

The net proceeds from the Fresh Issue are proposed to be deployed for the following purposes. All proceeds flow to the Company as there is no Offer for Sale component.

Object of Issue	Amount (Rs. Lakhs)	Details and Rationale
Acquisition of K-12 Assets from Promoter Subsidiaries	1,10,000	Rs. 1,10,000 Lakhs (52.38% of gross issue proceeds) will be used to acquire 16 K-12 school assets from subsidiaries of the Promoter group. These assets are currently held by Promoter-related entities and are proposed to be transferred into the listed company at valuations that will be disclosed in the RHP. This is the largest single allocation in the deployment plan and constitutes a related-party transaction. The 16 K-12 assets, once acquired, will add to the 2 Dubai K-12 school assets already on the Company's balance sheet (acquired September 2025). Post-acquisition, total capacity will reach approximately 1,04,341 beds and student seats combined. Investors should scrutinise the valuation methodology for these related-party acquisitions. The entire transaction is slated for completion in FY2027.
Repayment of Borrowings at Five Subsidiary Entities	75,000	Rs. 75,000 Lakhs will be deployed to repay borrowings across five specific subsidiary entities: GHS Shoolini, GHS Sonipat, Data Ram Sons, Souk HIS UAE, and Souk NLCS UAE. These are the entities holding the key accommodation campuses and the Dubai K-12 assets respectively. Debt repayment will reduce the consolidated interest burden and improve the net leverage ratio. As of FY2026, non-current borrowings stood at Rs. 4,00,322.50 Lakhs, and Net Debt to EBITDA is 4.98x. This debt repayment allocation partially addresses the leverage concern.
Inorganic Growth and General Corporate Purposes	Balance (up to 35% and 25% of gross proceeds respectively, individually capped)	The remaining balance of proceeds will be applied to inorganic growth opportunities identified by the Board (such as new campus acquisitions or new HEI partnerships requiring upfront investment) and general corporate purposes. These are residual allocations without pre-committed targets, giving the Board discretion in deployment. Combined, these two objects are individually capped at 35% and 25% of gross proceeds respectively under SEBI guidelines.

The deployment of over half the IPO proceeds toward acquiring K-12 assets from Promoter subsidiaries is the most significant structural feature of this issue and requires careful assessment by investors.

While the rationale for internalising these assets into the listed entity is strategically defensible (it consolidates the K-12 segment under one roof and may generate synergies with the student accommodation business), the transaction is structurally a related-party acquisition where the sellers are directly related to the promoters of the listed entity.

The adequacy of the valuation and the independence of the valuation process are therefore key diligence items that should be verified in the full RHP.

The debt repayment of Rs. 75,000 Lakhs is an important component of the deployment plan. Non-current borrowings expanded sharply from Rs. 1,18,372.90 Lakhs in FY2025 to Rs. 4,00,322.50 Lakhs in FY2026, driven by debt raised for the Dubai K-12 acquisitions.

The partial repayment of Rs. 75,000 Lakhs will reduce net leverage but, taken together with the new K-12 acquisition cost of Rs. 1,10,000 Lakhs, the net balance sheet impact of the IPO proceeds on debt is effectively neutral to slightly positive.

True leverage reduction will depend on the earnings generated by the K-12 assets post-acquisition.

FINANCIAL PERFORMANCE (CONSOLIDATED, RESTATED)

Revenue and Profitability

Metric	FY2024	FY2025	FY2026	Trend
Revenue from Operations (Rs. Lakhs)	34,700.10	36,981.10	56,863.30	Strong Growth
Revenue Growth (YoY %)		6.6%	53.8%	Accelerating
EBITDA (Rs. Lakhs)	22,012.90	25,640.30	54,499.80	Strong
EBITDA Margin (%)	60.71%	65.06%	90.32%	Expanding (note below)
Finance Costs (Rs. Lakhs)	10,923.40	12,554.20	23,909.50	Rising
PAT (Rs. Lakhs)	3,968.90	4,973.80	17,375.90	Elevated (note below)
Basic EPS (Rs.)	4.49	5.63	19.65	Elevated (note below)
Net Worth (Rs. Lakhs)	65,577.00	69,978.00	95,628.90	Growing
NAV per Share (Rs.)	Not stated	Not stated	432.62	FY2026 only
RoNW (%)	6.05%	7.11%	18.17%	Rising (note below)
Weighted Average Basic EPS (Rs.)			12.45	RHP figure
Weighted Average RoNW (%)			12.46%	RHP figure

Revenue from operations grew from Rs. 34,700.10 Lakhs in FY2024 to Rs. 56,863.30 Lakhs in FY2026, a CAGR of 28.01%. The FY2026 revenue growth of 53.8% was driven by the addition of the Dubai K-12 assets (acquired September 2025) and occupancy ramp-up in the owned accommodation portfolio.

EBITDA margins are exceptionally high for a real-estate linked business, reaching 90.32% in FY2026 from 60.71% in FY2024. This reflects the operating leverage inherent in the owned portfolio: once campuses are built and occupied, the variable cost of additional student accommodation is very low.

CRITICAL NOTE ON FY2026 PROFITABILITY: The sharp jump in PAT from Rs. 4,973.80 Lakhs in FY2025 to Rs. 17,375.90 Lakhs in FY2026 was largely driven by a one-time exceptional gain of Rs. 10,491.90 Lakhs arising from the sale of a hostel asset. Recurring profit before this exceptional item grew from Rs. 9,029.90 Lakhs to Rs. 9,884.30 Lakhs in FY2026, a much more modest improvement.

The Weighted Average Basic EPS of Rs. 12.45 (as computed in the RHP across multiple years) and Weighted Average RoNW of 12.46% are more appropriate recurring profitability benchmarks than the FY2026 reported figures. Investors should use the weighted average metrics for valuation purposes and should not anchor to the FY2026 PAT, EPS, or RoNW as representative of steady-state earnings.

Additionally, finance costs nearly doubled from Rs. 12,554.20 Lakhs in FY2025 to Rs. 23,909.50 Lakhs in FY2026 due to the debt raised for Dubai acquisitions.

Balance Sheet and Leverage

Metric	FY2024	FY2025	FY2026
Total Assets (Rs. Lakhs)	2,10,473.70	2,42,120.40	5,77,335.20
Net Worth (Rs. Lakhs)	65,577.00	69,978.00	95,628.90
Non-Current Borrowings (Rs. Lakhs)	88,520.10	1,18,372.90	4,00,322.50
Net Debt to EBITDA (x)	Not stated	2.71x (est.)	4.98x
Net Cash from Operating Activities (Rs. Lakhs)	26,445.10	21,872.40	29,707.50

The balance sheet expanded dramatically in FY2026: total assets nearly trebled from Rs. 2,42,120.40 Lakhs to Rs. 5,77,335.20 Lakhs, driven by the Dubai K-12 asset acquisitions and the addition of new accommodation campuses. Non-current borrowings expanded from Rs. 1,18,372.90 Lakhs to Rs. 4,00,322.50 Lakhs over the same period, taking Net Debt to EBITDA from an estimated 2.71x in FY2025 to 4.98x in FY2026.

This is a high leverage level for a student accommodation business, even accounting for the long-term contracted revenue nature of the business. IPO proceeds are intended to repay Rs. 75,000 Lakhs of these borrowings, which would reduce Net Debt to EBITDA to approximately 3.6x on a pro-forma basis (before any income from newly acquired K-12 assets).

Operating cash flows grew from Rs. 26,445.10 Lakhs in FY2024 to Rs. 29,707.50 Lakhs in FY2026, a positive sign of cash conversion from the accommodation business.

However, total operating cash flows over two years of Rs. 56,152.60 Lakhs are modest relative to the Rs. 3,11,802.40 Lakh increase in borrowings over the same period, indicating that the rapid asset expansion has been funded predominantly by debt rather than organic cash generation.

Post-IPO, the combination of debt repayment and elimination of interest costs on the repaid debt should improve free cash flow generation.

PEER COMPARISON

The RHP explicitly states that there are no listed companies in India whose business portfolio is comparable with that of Elevate Campuses Limited, and that it is therefore not possible to provide a meaningful industry peer comparison in the traditional sense.

The Company operates in the purpose-built managed student accommodation (PMSA) segment, which is nascent in the Indian listed space. The closest global analogues would be specialised student accommodation Real Estate Investment Trusts (REITs) or operators listed on international exchanges.

Company Operating KPI	Value (as at / for period stated)
Total Owned Beds	20,368 beds across 7 campuses (March 31, 2026)
Total Managed Beds	55,487 beds across 14 campuses (March 31, 2026)
Total Beds (incl. contracts signed)	78,542 beds (June 15, 2026)
Scale vs Next Largest Competitor	Approx. 2.1 times the next largest PMSA operator in India
Scale vs Third Largest Competitor	Approx. 6.2 times the third-largest PMSA operator in India
Cities Covered	15 Indian cities
International Assets	2 K-12 schools in Dubai, UAE (as of September 2025)
Minimum Occupancy Guarantee (Owned)	87.55% blended across owned portfolio
HEI Partners with NAAC A or above	15 out of 19 HEI partners
EBITDA Margin FY2026	90.32% (includes one-time items; underlying approx. 60 to 70%)
Revenue CAGR FY2024 to FY2026	28.01%
Net Debt to EBITDA (FY2026)	4.98x (pre-IPO proceeds application)

In the absence of listed Indian peers, the Company's own operational KPIs serve as the primary benchmark. The 78,542-bed scale (as of June 2026) and the structural advantages of minimum occupancy guarantees, long-term HEI contracts (typically 15 to 25 years), and a negative working capital cycle (student fees collected in advance) are the key value drivers.

Investors seeking comparables may look at international student accommodation operators such as Unite Students (listed in London), American Campus Communities (US), or Australian-listed student accommodation REITs for reference frameworks on operating metrics and appropriate valuation multiples for this asset class.

A critical valuation consideration is the normalised earnings base. The FY2026 EPS of Rs. 19.65 includes the one-time hostel sale gain and should not be used as the earnings base for pricing. The Weighted Average Basic EPS of Rs. 12.45 is more representative.

At any significant premium to book value (NAV per share: Rs. 432.62), investors are pricing in future growth from the K-12 acquisitions and continued occupancy ramp-up in the accommodation portfolio.

The high leverage (4.98x Net Debt to EBITDA pre-IPO) and the related-party nature of the K-12 acquisitions (discussed in Section 6) are the primary factors that should temper the multiple applied to the underlying business quality.

KEY RISKS

Related-Party K-12 Acquisitions Consuming 52% of IPO Proceeds.  Rs. 1,10,000 Lakhs, representing 52.38% of gross issue proceeds, is earmarked for acquiring 16 K-12 assets from subsidiaries of the Promoter group (Hillhouse-related entities). This is a related-party transaction where the sellers are directly connected to the promoters of the listed entity.

There is an inherent conflict of interest: the Promoter group has an incentive to maximise the acquisition price at which assets are transferred to the listed entity, while public shareholders have an interest in minimising it. Investors should scrutinise the independent valuation of these assets, the basis for pricing, and the governance process by which the Board (which includes Promoter-appointed directors) approved this transaction.

Extreme HEI Partner Concentration.  The top three HEI partners (O.P. Jindal Global University, Manipal University Jaipur, and Shoolini University) together contributed 61.46% of FY2026 revenues. The single largest partner, O.P. Jindal Global University, contributed 36.97% on its own. There are no alternative demand sources that could quickly replace a major HEI partner. Loss or non-renewal of even one of the top two relationships would have a severe and immediate impact on revenues, profitability, and the ability to service the significant debt on the balance sheet.

High Balance Sheet Leverage.  Non-current borrowings expanded from Rs. 1,18,372.90 Lakhs in FY2025 to Rs. 4,00,322.50 Lakhs in FY2026, taking Net Debt to EBITDA to 4.98x. Even after applying the Rs. 75,000 Lakh repayment from IPO proceeds, pro-forma Net Debt to EBITDA would remain approximately 3.6x on pre-acquisition EBITDA. The K-12 acquisitions financed by IPO proceeds will add assets but also require management bandwidth and carry execution uncertainty. Finance costs nearly doubled to Rs. 23,909.50 Lakhs in FY2026 and will continue to compress net margins until the debt is materially reduced.

One-Time Gain Inflating FY2026 Reported Financials.  The FY2026 PAT of Rs. 17,375.90 Lakhs includes a non-recurring exceptional gain of Rs. 10,491.90 Lakhs from the sale of a hostel asset. Recurring pre-exceptional PAT grew to only Rs. 9,884.30 Lakhs, from Rs. 9,029.90 Lakhs in FY2025. Investors and analysts who use the headline FY2026 PAT or EPS for pricing purposes will materially overestimate the Company's recurring earnings power and assign an inflated multiple to the normalised business.

Delayed Lease and Rental Payments by HEIs and K-12 Operators.  The Company has experienced delays of up to 6 months in lease rental payments from HEI partners and K-12 Operators. Persistent payment delays strain working capital and could require additional borrowings to bridge cash flow gaps. Given the already-high leverage position, any working capital deterioration would add to the financial risk profile.

Contract Non-Renewal and Termination Risk.  HEI and K-12 Operator contracts are long-term but subject to renewal and contain early termination clauses. Non-renewal of major HEI contracts at maturity, or early termination by a partner facing its own financial difficulties, would remove guaranteed occupancy support and expose specific campus assets to direct demand risk.

Limited K-12 Operating Track Record.  The Dubai K-12 assets (Heritage International School and NLCS Dubai) were only acquired in September 2025. The Company has less than two full years of K-12 operating experience at the time of this IPO. Integration of 16 additional K-12 assets post-IPO would represent a significant operational scale-up in a business where management has limited depth of experience.

Land Title and Property Record Risks.  India does not maintain a centralised property title registry equivalent to those in developed markets. The Company holds or develops accommodation assets on HEI land under long-term contractual arrangements. Any disputes over underlying land title, encumbrances on HEI land, or adverse government orders affecting specific campuses could require significant remediation time and cost.

Regulatory Non-Compliance History.  The Company was non-compliant with the minimum shareholder requirement under the Companies Act 2013 for the period from April 1, 2024 to July 28, 2025. An adjudication application is pending before the Registrar of Companies. While this is likely a procedural matter, an adverse order or penalty could have reputational and financial implications.

KEY POSITIVES

India's Largest PMSA Platform with Dominant Scale Advantage.  Elevate Campuses is India's largest purpose-built managed student accommodation operator with 78,542 beds as of June 15, 2026, which is approximately 2.1 times the next largest competitor and 6.2 times the third-largest operator.

This scale advantage is not easily replicated: building a national PMSA network requires long lead times, university relationships, land access, capital, and institutional credibility that take years to accumulate. The competitive moat from scale is substantial.

Long-Term Contracts with Minimum Occupancy Guarantees.  HEI partners provide minimum occupancy guarantees averaging 87.55% on the owned portfolio, substantially reducing demand-side risk. Contract tenures are typically 15 to 25 years, providing exceptionally long revenue visibility. This contracted revenue structure is analogous to a regulated utility or infrastructure concession and commands a premium valuation multiple in international markets.

Outstanding EBITDA Margins Reflecting Operating Leverage.  Underlying EBITDA margins in the 60 to 70% range (before one-time items) are exceptional for a real-estate-linked operations business. Once a campus is built and occupancy reaches stabilised levels, the incremental cost of serving additional students is very low, creating powerful operating leverage. As the Company adds more campuses to the owned portfolio and they mature, aggregate EBITDA margins should continue to expand.

Structurally Negative Working Capital Cycle.  Student fees are collected in advance of service delivery, creating a structurally negative working capital position. Unlike most businesses where growth in revenue requires proportional growth in receivables, a PMSA business that collects fees upfront actually generates working capital from growth. This is a significant cash flow advantage and means the business self-funds a portion of its own growth.

High-Quality and Diverse HEI Partner Network.  15 out of 19 current HEI partners carry NAAC A or better accreditation. Partners include prestigious institutions: IIIT Bangalore, IIT Madras (greenfield project), O.P. Jindal Global University (one of India's highest-ranked private universities), and Manipal University Jaipur. The quality of the partner network provides demand assurance and brand credibility that makes it easier to attract students and sign new HEI relationships.

Strong and Accelerating Revenue Growth.  Revenue from operations grew at a CAGR of 28.01% from FY2024 to FY2026, with the FY2026 year-on-year growth of 53.8% accelerating substantially from the prior year. While the Dubai K-12 acquisition contributes to this acceleration, the underlying accommodation business is also growing as new campuses are added and existing campuses mature toward higher occupancy levels.

Institutional Quality Promoter and BRLM Backing.  The backing of Hillhouse Investment, a global institutional firm with a strong track record in education and real estate across Asia, provides credibility and access to global best practices in PMSA operations. The appointment of Morgan Stanley as one of three BRLMs signals institutional investor targeting and suggests strong international investor interest in the issue.

Pure Fresh Issue Structure Retaining All Proceeds for Growth.  The entire Rs. 2,10,000 Lakhs of IPO proceeds flows to the Company, with no promoter exit element. This aligns the promoters' interests with ongoing Company performance and ensures that investor capital is deployed for operational scale-up rather than providing liquidity to existing shareholders.

DISCLAIMER

This report is prepared for informational purposes only and is based on the Red Herring Prospectus filed by Elevate Campuses Limited. It does not constitute investment advice or a recommendation to subscribe to the IPO. Financial figures are in Indian Rupees (Lakhs) unless otherwise stated. Investors are strongly advised to read the full RHP carefully, evaluate the related-party transaction disclosures in detail, and consult a registered financial adviser before making any investment decision.