Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd., Kotak Mahindra Bank Ltd. and Ashok Leyland Ltd. were among the top companies on brokerages' radar on Thursday.
Further, BofA projected headline inflation at 4.8% for financial year 2025, slowing to 4.1% in financial year 2026.
In addition, BofA and Morgan Stanley have hiked the target price for Ashok Leyland while cutting the target price for Bharat Forge.
NDTV Profit tracks what analysts are saying about various stocks and sectors. Here are the analyst calls to keep an eye out for on Thursday.
BofA on India CPI
Headline inflation sharply declines, while core inflation moves slightly up.
Perishable price gap has closed down.
RBI continues its rate-cutting cycle.
Industrial production moderated in December after strong growth in November.
Project headline inflation at 4.8% for financial year 2025, slowing to 4.1% in financial year 2026.
JPMorgan on Hindustan Aeronautics
Maintained 'Overweight' but cut the target price to Rs 4,958 from Rs 5,135.
Healthy revenue and order inflow in third quarter of this financial year.
A strong order book and high growth visibility.
Long-term growth driven by the aging fighter aircraft fleet upgrade.
Brokerages On Ashok Leyland
Macquarie
Maintain 'Neutral' with a target price of Rs 226.
Third quarter showed a margin-led Ebitda beat.
Management expects steady growth in fourth quarter with improved demand, supported by lower rates.
Anticipate demand surprises in the commercial vehicle segment, with steady margins.
BofA
Maintained 'Buy' and raised the target price to Rs 260 from Rs 250.
Third quarter results showed resilience. The results were mixed, and margin delivery was underrated.
The truck recovery is on the horizon, with improvements in exports and EV investments.
Morgan Stanley
Maintained 'Overweight' and raised the target price to Rs 284 from Rs 268.
Improving margin profile keeps the stock 'Overweight'.
A better mix of tippers and ramp-up in high-margin exports and non-auto businesses supports margins.
Positive surprise in margins expected as the MHCV cycle turns.
Brokerages On Kotak Mahindra Bank
Macquarie
Maintained 'Outperform' with a target price of Rs 2,200.
The lifting of RBI restrictions is a welcome relief.
This will support growth and cushion margins.
Kotak’s inexpensive valuations and strong earnings growth in financial year 2026 are factors for maintaining an 'Outperform' rating.
UBS
Maintained 'Neutral' rating but hiked target price to Rs 2,100 from Rs 1,950.
The lifting of the embargo is expected to support loan and fee growth.
Kotak lost 130 bps of market share in CC outstanding during nine months of this fiscal.
The bank gains enhanced flexibility in acquiring new deposit customers.
Morgan Stanley
Maintained 'Overweight' with a target price of Rs 2,290.
The Reserve Bank of India lifted restrictions on Kotak Bank.
Kotak’s profitability is better than peers, with potential re-acceleration in unsecured loan growth to support margins and growth.
Brokerages On Bharat Forge
BofA
Maintained 'Underperform' and cut the target price to Rs 985 from Rs 1,100.
Europe challenges drive third quarter miss, and the outlook remains weak.
Overseas subsidiary restructuring is expected in 2-3 quarters.
New verticals like Aerospace, Defence, and Casting offer long-term potential.
Morgan Stanley
Maintained 'Overweight' but cut the target price to Rs 1,366 from Rs 1,468.
Challenging macro environment, but non-auto verticals are ramping up well.
Third quarter Ebitda was 8-9%, lower than consensus.
Bullish on the US Class 8 cycle and strong growth in non-auto verticals.
Expect narrowing losses in international subsidiaries and a possible domestic order for the Advanced Towed Artillery Gun System.
Brokerages On Crompton Greaves Consumer
Morgan Stanley
Maintained 'Underweight' rating and cut the target price to Rs 352 from Rs 402.
Earnings reduced by 3-4% over financial year 2025-2027.
Goldman Sachs
Maintained 'Buy' but cut the target price to Rs 460 from Rs 500.
Profitability improves, but growth remains weak.
Maintain 'Buy' due to favorable risk-reward.
Crompton is one of the cheapest stocks in the consumer durables sector.
Consistency in performance is key, and recent quarters increase confidence.
Macquarie on SBI Cards
Upgraded to 'Outperform' from 'Neutral' and raised target price to Rs 1,000 from Rs 735.
Channel checks indicate credit card slippages are plateauing.
Expect credit costs to start declining significantly in the next two quarters.
Additional catalysts include falling rates, easing liquidity, tax cuts, and RBI's softer stance on unsecured loans.
Jefferies on Honasa Consumer
Maintained 'Buy' rating but reduced the target price to Rs 320 from Rs 360.
Honasa reported inline revenues with a slight Ebitda beat.
The company turned from a loss to a profit, although margins compressed year-on-year.
The Mamaearth brand continued to decline, while younger brands grew by over 30%.
Management's focus remains on improving distribution, with new distributors in top-50 cities.
After a significant stock correction in the previous quarter, the stock is considered high-risk reward.
Brokerages On PFC
UBS
Maintained 'Buy' rating but cut the target price to Rs 600 from Rs 670.
Profit exceeded expectations, but AUM growth was slightly below.
The stock is attractively priced, and management is confident of closing the year with 14% AUM growth, aided by better disbursements in fourth quarter.
Macquarie
Maintained 'Outperform' with target price of Rs 660.
Growth trajectory disappointing, though profit beat was driven by higher NIM and forex gains.
Financial year 2025 growth target of 14% year-on-year seems challenging.
Negative credit costs expected in the near term.
Nuvama on Muthoot Finance
Upgraded to 'Buy' from 'Reduce' and raised the target price to Rs 2,550 from Rs 1,870.
Third quarter was another solid quarter.
Strong AUM growth with stable NIM.
Bullish on consistent performance, gold price increase, and mixed performance from other lending segments.
UBS on Siemens
Maintain 'Buy' with a target price of Rs 8,000.
Energy segment remains healthy.
Short-cycle weakness impacted the P&L outside of the energy sector.
Recent commentary shows incremental positive impact on business post-budget.
Healthy growth in orders outside of energy reflects continued order momentum, coupled with accelerated capex and a strong order pipeline in energy and mobility.
Brokerages on Jubilant Food
Jefferies
Maintained 'Buy' with target price of Rs 1,000.
India SSSG rose to double digits, with management focused on growth despite margin pressures.
SSSG momentum continued into January 2025.
The first-ever analyst meet indicates strong management confidence.
Slightly trim Ebitda, but Jubilant remains a top pick in retail and discretionary stocks.
Morgan Stanley
Maintained 'Overweight' with a target price of Rs 781.
Third quarter showed a margin miss, but management remains confident in growth.
Delivery’s share of revenue rose to 71.4%.
Management is confident about rebuilding gross margins in the coming quarters.
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