Piotroski 8/9 Meets Low P/E in TCS, Infosys, ITC

Cheap and clean rarely show up together in Indian equities. The latest Piotroski screen says eight names now do. Piotroski 8/9 meets low P/E in TCS, Infosys, ITC and a cluster of large banks. That means the market is not asking much for companies with strong balance-sheet signals. It should interest investors who have watched high-multiple growth names carry most of the index's gains since 2023. The screen runs through nine accounting-based checks. They cover profitability and operating efficiency. They also cover capital structure. An 8 out of 9 score indicates that earnings quality is running ahead of the price being asked. [TCS](/stock/TCS) (NSE: TCS) posts return on equity of 47.7%. [ITC](/stock/ITC) (NSE: ITC) posts 49.8%. [Infosys](/stock/INFY) (NSE: INFY) combines a 15.13 price-to-earnings multiple with 32.0% ROE. [NTPC](/stock/NTPC) (NSE: NTPC) trades at a 10.39 P/E. Those are concrete numbers, not screen backtests. Foreign portfolio flows have been choppy. Crude prices remain a variable. The rupee's path against the dollar affects IT exporters and import-heavy manufacturers differently. If global rates stay higher for longer, the discount on long-duration growth should persist. That's one reason a quality-at-a-price screen has more relevance in 2025 than a pure momentum screen. Why the Piotroski 8/9 Low P/E Screen Matters Now The banking names show up because earnings quality has improved while multiples have not repriced fully. [HDFC Bank](/stock/HDFCBANK) (NSE: HDFCBANK), [State Bank of India](/stock/SBIN) (NSE: SBIN), [Kotak Mahindra Bank](/stock/KOTAKBANK) (NSE: KOTAKBANK), and [Axis Bank](/stock/AXISBANK) (NSE: AXISBANK) all combine an 8/9 F-Score with undemanding earnings multiples. They don't trade at the same multiples they did when credit costs were falling and deposit competition was lighter. That divergence is the screen. If asset quality holds through the next two quarters, the valuation gap could narrow even without aggressive loan growth. ...