Stock Picks Today: Nestle, HCL Tech, Persistent Systems, Cyient DLM And More On Brokerages' Radar

Brokerages issued fresh calls on Nestle, HCL Technologies, and the hotels and travel sector, while flagging risks to insurers and mixed trends in consumer names.

MS on Nestle

• Maintain Equal-weight; Hike TP to Rs 1,461 from Rs 1,370.
• Strong Beat on Topline and Margins.
• Domestic revenues grew 23% YoY marking the third consecutive quarter of double-digit growth.
• Strong earnings delivery and positive topline surprise.
• Management commentary focussed on driving growth.
• These factors augur well for near-term stock performance.
• Key priorities remain penetration-led volume growth, reinvesting behind brands, customer centricity and accelerating tech-led sales and operations.
• Over the last 5 years, MAGGI noodles has maintained its leadership position, while KITKAT and NESCAFE accelerated market share growth.

GS on Nestle

• Maintain Neutral; Hike TP to Rs 1,425 from Rs 1,275.
• Revenue grew 23% driven by double-digit volume growth, as GST cut benefits play out across categories.
• GST rate cuts and quick commerce expansion a key driver for growth acceleration, likely to sustain in H1FY27.
• Gross margins likely to remain stable as key input costs remain range-bound.

Investec on Nestle

• Upgrade to Hold from Sell; Hike TP to Rs 1,426 from Rs 1,341.
• Sweet momentum continues.
• Robust volume-led growth.
• Robust operating margins on cost efficiencies.
• Await more compelling valuation and continued evidence of this growth momentum before considering a further upgrade.

Jefferies on Nestle

• Maintain Hold; Hike TP to Rs 1,325 from Rs 1,300.

• Strong end to FY26.
• Delivered strong Q4, supported by double digit volume growth.
• Ad spends rose by sharp 50%, signalling a growth mindset.
• Despite this, EBITDA margins expanded to multi-qtr high even while gross margin contracted.
• Growth was broad-based across categories & channels.
• Management remains focused on driving penetration-led vol. growth, investing behind brands & capacity, and leveraging technology.
• Retain Hold rating on stiff valuation. 

Macquarie on Nestle

• Maintain Neutral; Hike TP to Rs 1,400 from Rs 1,260
• Think this healthy sales growth can be sustained
• Growth led by the GST rate cut linked grammage increases and rural distribution expansion
• Maintain Neutral as we see limited upside at the current 63x FY27E EPS.
   

Kotak Securities on Nestle

• Maintain Reduce; Hike TP to Rs 1,265 from Rs 1,200.
• Internal execution supported by external tailwinds.
• Q4: Strong volume-led growth with margin expansion despite higher A&P.
• Stock trades at an expensive 69X/58X FY27/28E PE, which already factors 18% EPS CAGR over FY26-28.

Citi on Nestle

• Maintain Buy; Hike TP to Rs 1,675 from Rs 1,600.
• An All Round Beat To Support Premium Valuations.
• Believe growth momentum is sustainable over the near-to-medium-term, supported by brand strength and execution.
• Despite 20% stock rally over the past month, expect earnings trajectory to support premium valuations.

ALSO READ: Nestle Q4 Results: Profit Beats Estimates Despite One-Time Loss; Final Dividend Of Rs 5 Announced

MS on SBI Life

• Maintain Overweight with TP of Rs 2,375.
• Investors are asking about potential regulatory risks to SBI Life from the introduction of mandatory open architecture for banks.
• Do not second-guess regulation but outline key points that suggest any risk of adverse outcomes is limited
• In its recent draft norms, the RBI has not mandated open architecture, requiring choice of provider (including insurance) only in cases of mandatory bundling.
• At a press meet in Feb 2026, the RBI Governor said instances of mis selling are low but emphasized the need to safeguard individual customer interests.
• SBI Life's mis-selling ratio consistently among lowest in industry.
• Parent-subsidiary structure likely gives the bank better control over sales practices
• SBI Life's low cost base supported by closed banca architecture.
• Shifting sales to non-bank staff would likely raise both commission and non-commission costs.
• If policy objective is to reduce commissions for customer benefit, industry experience suggests open architecture can lead to higher commission costs.

Macquarie on Cyient DLM

• Maintain Neutral; Cut TP to Rs 350 from Rs 380.
• Q4 Weak execution continues.
• Quarter missed significantly due to overhang from tariffs and Middle East conflicts.
• Order book growth is strong but is not converting into revenue as yet.
• Management expects QoQ revenue growth from here on.

Citi on HCL Tech

• Maintain Neutral; Cut TP to Rs 1385 from Rs 1400.
• Weak Q4FY26 and FY27 revenue guidance.
• Weak guidance will weigh on the stock in the near term.
• Industry view remains bearish.
• HCL continues to be relatively better placed medium term in the peer group context.

Investec on HCL Tech

• Maintain Hold; Cut TP to Rs 1,350 from Rs 1,680
• A weak quarter and guidance
• Negative surprise was led by client specific issues across multiple segments
• These revenue headwinds are likely to continue into Q1FY27
• This leads to a weaker-than-anticipated revenue growth guidance of 1-4% vs est. 3-6%

Citi on Persistent Systems

• Maintain Sell with TP of Rs 4,230.
• Q4FY26 Largely Inline; Valuation at Significant Premium to Peers.
• Management comments – macro uncertainty but confident in driving share gains.
• Continue to be cautious on the sector given high competitive intensity and AI impact. 

Jefferies on 360 One

• Maintain Buy; Hike TP to Rs 1300 from Rs 1190
• Mar '26 Qtr: Profit Ahead with Better Carry Income; Normalization Ahead
• Net flows returned to normalised levels, but MTM losses led to a 2% QoQ fall in AUM.
• Over FY26-29E, see a 15% CAGR in revenue and 18% CAGR in PAT
• Se synergies from the integration of B&K's business, monetisation of ET Money, and ramp-up of the HNI franchise.

Nomura on Leela Palaces

• Initiate Buy with TP of Rs 510.
• Beneficiary of ultra-luxury demand with strong, diversified pipeline.
• Expect high-single- to low-double-digit RevPAR growth over FY26-29.
• 580 new owned keys by FY29F Vs 1,200 owned keys currently in domestic market.
• Estimate EBITDA/NP CAGRs of 17%/26% through FY26F-29.

Nomura on Chalet Hotels

• Initiate Neutral with TP of Rs 860.

• Strong pipeline, but execution is key; occupancy ramp-up is key monitorable.
• Mumbai/corporate-heavy portfolio; portfolio to undergo stabilisation in FY27-28.
• Strong pipeline of ~1,500 keys; execution on hotel opening and new brand “Athiva” is key.
• Expect revenue/EBITDA CAGRs of ~15%/15% over FY26-29.

Kotak Securities on HCL Tech

• Maintain Reduce; Cut TP to Rs 1,370 from Rs 1,425.
• Disappoints on all counts; guidance reflects a tougher reality.
• All-round miss; client-specific factors and project pull-backs.
• FY2027 revenue guidance—hit by client-specific factors, AI deflation.

MS on HCL Tech

• Maintain Equal-weight; Cut TP to Rs 1410 from Rs 1760
• P/E Premium to Normalise vs. Peers Given Growth Rates Converging
• Macro remains volatile, which could spring unexpected client-specific issues
• AI-led deflation in existing core business to affect growth rates while new services take time to bloom
• Incremental currency benefits to be reinvested.

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