Stock Picks Today: Pine Labs, GMR Airports, Ashok Leyland, Mphasis And More On Brokerages' Radar

Brokerages shared fresh views on Pine Labs, Oil and Natural Gas Corporation, Mphasis, GMR Airports, while strategy notes highlighted trends in real estate, infrastructure and midcaps.

Jefferies on Pine Labs

• Maintains BUY, target price cut to Rs185 from Rs 260.
• Mar quarter weak, core earnings missed.
• Contribution margin at 73%; impacted by slower affordability and issuing businesses.
• Adjusted EBITDA margin improved to 21% due to lower opex growth and one-time gains.
• Key positive was strong improvement in cash flows.
• Management expects growth recovery from 1Q onwards to ~20%.
• FY27 revenue growth guided at 21–23%.
• FY27–28 revenue estimates cut by 4–5% on weak Q4 and higher capex.
• Valuation at ~19x FY28E EV/EBIT seen attractive vs Paytm at ~53x.

JP Morgan on General Insurance Corp of India

• OW maintained on improving underwriting trajectory
• Target price increased to Rs 500 from Rs 480
• 4Q26 strong print with underwriting improvement
• Profit supported by forex gains due to rupee depreciation
• Lower underwriting losses also aided earnings

Jefferies on GMR Airports

• Rated buy with target price of Rs 125; 30% upside.
• PAT much stronger than expected.
• EBITDA slightly below expectations.
• 4Q EBITDA impacted by weak international traffic and higher costs at Hyderabad airport.
• Passenger traffic grew only 1% YoY for both Q4 and FY26.
• Domestic traffic grew 2% YoY while international traffic declined 1% YoY.
• Traffic impacted by war-related disruption in March.

 Citi on GMR Airports

• Q4 Core Profit missed by 18%, yet remains profitable despite industry challenges.

BofA on GMR Airports

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 122
• Q4 broadly in-line, positive outlook commentary
• FY27 outlook: Upside to Hyderabad tariffs, traffic growth in H2.

JP Morgan on Vishal Mega Mart

• Maintains overweight with target price of Rs 145
• Growth expected to sustain despite inflationary environment
• Store expansion to remain aggressive, with ~100 stores added in FY26
• SSSG expected to remain strong, supported by high footfalls and transaction resilience
• Gross margins may face pressure due to raw material (COGS) inflation
• EBITDA margins guided to remain stable to modest expansion

Citi on Kotak Mahindra Bank

• Maintains Buy rating with target price of Rs 485; upside 24.9%.
• Exudes measured confidence on transformation.
• Technology stack upgraded, senior leadership rebuilt across risk, analytics and tech.
• Targeting growth of 1.5–2x nominal GDP over the cycle.
• Secured retail and SME expected to be key growth drivers.
• Cost of funds benefit expected to be gradual, not immediate.
• NIM outlook more dependent on yield improvement rather than funding cost decline.

 JPMorgan on Kotak Mahindra Bank

• Maintain Overweight with TP of Rs 476

• KMB remains focused on growing “responsibly and profitably”
• Growth target maintained at 1.5-2x nominal GDP
• NIM challenged by tight funding environment; CASA growth in focus
• Asset Quality benign with no impact from Middle East conflict
• Focus shifting to costs and efficiency with credit issues behind

Citi on ONGC

• Stock upgraded to Neutral with Rs 295 target price (~20% upside)
• 4Q performance materially weak vs expectations
• Both oil and gas production declined, coming 2–4% below expectations
• Despite miss, management remains optimistic on gas production outlook
• expects recovery in gas production over next 2 years
• Growth expected from KG block, Daman Upside and DSF projects
• FY27/28 EBITDA estimates raised by 10%/6%
• Investment case supported by higher earnings outlook and dividend yield

Jefferies on Adani Airports

• Adani Airports: Navi Mumbai Airport Visit.
• AAHL portfolio spans 8 airports, with 100% ownership in 6 concession airports and 74% in MIAL.
• Total gross assets at Rs 594bn, with regulated asset base (RAB) at Rs 370bn.
• NMIAL expected to unlock supply gap and drive latent demand.
• Over time, MMR capacity to reach ~150mn passengers.
• India aviation demand growing at 10–11% CAGR (ex-COVID), outlook remains structurally strong.
• Near-term traffic could see volatility due to geopolitical and macro factors.
• Strategy focused on higher passenger penetration and increased spend per passenger.
• Total ~660 acres available for development across airports, including 437 acres at Mumbai/Navi Mumbai.
• Phase 1 includes 104 acres under development, with ~22mn sq ft construction and 14.1mn sq ft built-up.
• City-side revenues expected to pick up meaningfully later in the decade.
• Returns expected to improve as projects mature and occupancy ramps up.

Jefferies on Groww

• Takeaways From The Roadshow
• Maintains BUY with target price of Rs 225; upside potential 20%   
• Bull case on strong execution and cross-sell
• bears flag WM scalability and regulatory risks.
• Valuation at PEG 1.1x seen attractive
• Market share in core broking has more legs to grow
• Consumer lending is an add-on product:
• Wealth launched on organic demand, profitability expected in 2–3 years.
• Broking share upside as active clients at 28–29% vs turnover share 15–16%, scope to converge
• User stickiness strong due to difficulty in asset transfer between platforms

JP Morgan on Dabur India

• Takeaways from JPM India Consumer CEO Fireside Chat Series.
• Maintains Neutral; Price Target: Rs 525.
• Growth to be driven by balanced mix of volume and pricing.
• Commodity inflation has spiked to ~10% in Q1FY27 vs ~3% in Q4FY26.
• Mid-single digit price hikes in Q1 with more likely if inflation sustains.
• Accelerating productivity initiatives to offset cost pressures.
• Hair care, oral care, OTC healthcare, home care and foods expected to outperform.
• FY27 margins expected to remain stable with H1 facing COGS pressure and H2 seeing recovery.
• Revenue growth expected to be led by pricing.
• Inflationary environment may impact volume growth.

JP Morgan on Tata Consumer

• CEO Interaction: Multiple growth engines with improving profitability
• Maintains Overweight with target price of Rs 1340
• Confident of double-digit FY27 revenue growth.
• Confident on EBITDA margin expansion of 50–70 bps annually
• Operating leverage to further support margin expansion
• Jp morgan constructive on TCPL with ~13% revenue CAGR and ~17% EBITDA CAGR over FY26–28E, supporting premium multiples
• Sampann expected to sustain ~30% growth over medium term.

Kotak Securities on Mphasis

• Maintain Reduce with TP of Rs 2275.
• Management believes current AI trends will benefit Mphasis.
• Newly introduced Tria platform is capable of driving end-to-end modernisation leveraging AI.
• The business model will shift to platform + people model focusing on outcomes.
• Large deals team has helped Mphasis take better advantage of AI-led disruption.

HSBC on Mphasis

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 2,780.
• Launched Tria to pivot from services to a platform-plus-outcomes model, measured as Annual Recurring Revenue (ARR).
• Strong AI demand lifted TTM TCV to USD2bn+, supporting high single- to double-digit FY26–28e revenue growth.
• Valuations look reasonable while revenue growth trajectory has improved.

Nomura on Mphasis

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 2,620.
• Mphasis is focusing on “agency model” to win in the AI world.
• Large deals teams helping in winning more deals.
• Changing delivery at scale with new paradigm in mind.
• Maintaining disciplined capital allocation while investing for growth.
• Pivoting business model towards a more outcome-based one.

MS on Mphasis

• Maintain Overweight with TP of Rs 2730
• Transitioning from services to outcome-accountable platform model, with FY27 as the foundational year
• It's in early stages, but proof points are visible in our view.
• Management expects to report key operating metrics like ARR, Platform Attach Rate, and Net Retention Rate from FY28, which reflects confidence.

JPMorgan on Mphasis

• Maintain Overweight with TP of Rs 2,650.
• AI strategy and evolving deal dynamics.
• AI implementation in brownfield projects remains complex.
• Strategic engagement team for better “go to market”
• Leveraging the Balance Sheet to “buy contracts” in consolidation exercises.

 Kotak Securities on Vinati Organics

• Maintain Sell; Cut TP to Rs 1200 from Rs 1260
• Growth remains a struggle
• FY26 revenue decline was primarily due to IBB and ATBS
• Guidance remains upbeat, but risks include slippages, demand and competition
• Cut FY27-28E EPS by a further 9-10%

 Kotak Securities on Varroc Engineering

• Maintain Reduce; Cut TP to Rs 550 from Rs 590
• Another weak quarter
• Q4 EBITDA 6% below estimates
• Expect domestic revenues to grow marginally ahead of industry growth
• Cut our FY27-28 EPS estimates by 5-6%

 Citi on Varroc Engineering

• Maintain Sell with TP of Rs 520.
• Q4 Results Below Estimates; Outlook is Positive.
• Tad surprised by the revenue growth lagging the underlying industry volume growth.
• Cost pressures are elevated but mgmt. noted that metal costs are a pass-through.
• Could see inflation in depreciation and interest cost, further depressing profits.

 Jefferies on Finolex Industries

• Maintain Buy; Hike TP to Rs 220 from Rs 195
• Margin Beat; Favourable Risk Reward
• View as a play on Agri/rural
• Plumbing is now at ~37%, with target at ~50% in next 5-year, augering well for margins
• Buy on favourable risk-reward.

JPMorgan on Siemens

• Maintain Underweight; Hike TP to Rs 3334 from Rs 2795
• Weak Q4, valuations expensive for mid-teens growth
• Margins impacted by commodity prices and exchange rates
• Smart Infrastructure: Commodity headwinds denting margins
• Digital Industries: Currency depreciation impacts margins.
• BofA on Siemens
• Maintain Underperform; Hike TP to Rs 2980 from Rs 2960
• Ordering masks earnings miss
• Weak quarter: commodity & currency drags margins
• Execution and ordering momentum could remain robust
• Near term commodity inflation could keep earnings muted
• Risk reward unfavourable

 HSBC on Tenneco

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 700
• Suspension premiumisation emerging as a structural trend in Indian PVs
• Indian PVs are entering suspension premiumisation cycle, supporting Tenneco's long-term content growth opportunity
• M&M's superior ride-quality positioning could accelerate industrywide adoption of passive-plus suspensions
• Industry feedback indicates customers pay premiums for better comfort & driving experience

 GS on Physicswallah

• Maintain Neutral; Hike TP to Rs 133 from Rs 130
• Large beat on revenue/EBITDA with some clarity on capital allocation
• Company does not expect to make any material investments in the K-12 segment
• This could help allay investor concerns on capital allocation
• Strategy behind Rs 120 cr investment in its NBFC arm are currently limited
• Therefore could weigh on the stock's multiples

 HSBC on Physicswallah

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 135
• Offline expansion fuels growth
• Total revenue was up 51% YoY, growth was driven by offline expansion and rising premiumisation in online business
• Long-term value creation is dependent on successful execution of offline business and K-12 online penetration
• Forecast a FY26-30 EBITDA CAGR of 60%.

 
Cantor on Adani Ports

• Maintain Overweight; Hike TP to Rs 2178 from Rs 1719

• Ambition 2031 Reinforces Integrated Transport Thesis
• FY27 guidance is constructive yet intentionally conservative
• Post-earnings message is that APSEZ remains a compounding infrastructure platform
• Domestic ports remain the earnings anchor
• International ports were a key upside driver
• Logistics and marine continue to scale as strategic growth pillars
• Ambition 2031 is the most important incremental disclosure
• Capital allocation remains disciplined.
• Macquarie on Siemens
• Maintain Neutral with TP of Rs 3510
• Weak operating performance; outlook improves
• 150 bps drop in EBITDA margin due to adverse commodities and forex
• Improved outlook on private capex more visible.

MS on Ashok Leyland

• Maintain Equal-weight with TP of Rs 180.
• In-line Quarter, Inflationary Headwinds Keep Us Equal-weight.
• Demand is holding up well but headwinds need to be monitored.
• To manage commodity headwinds, the company has hiked prices 1-1.5%.
• Commodity headwind is a challenge but AL did not quantify it.
• Switch mobility has turned profitable.
• Company is starting battery pack manufacturing also. 

Jefferies on Ashok Leyland

• Maintain Hold; Cut TP to Rs 160 from Rs 190.
• In-line Q4, but Truck Demand Uncertainty.
• Cut FY27-28 EPS by 5-8% on lower margins.
• Truck demand outlook is clouded by rising fuel prices, potential impact of higher inflation and weak monsoon on economy.
• Higher metal prices could pose some margin headwinds too.

Citi on Ashok Leyland

• Maintain Buy with TP of Rs 205.
• Q4 Results Slightly Above Estimates.
• Outlook is Positive Though.
• Near-Term Demand Could See Some Moderation.

JPMorgan on Ashok Leyland

• Maintain Neutral; Hike TP to Rs 175 from Rs 170.
• Pricing discipline likely to continue amid volatile demand trends.
• Underlying demand drivers remain resilient amid fluid macro conditions.

Macquarie on Alkem Labs

• Maintain Underperform with TP of Rs 4,900.
• Q4FY26 results: Profitability miss; in-line guidance.
• Mgmt expects its India branded generics business to outperform Indian pharma market (IPM) growth by 100-150bps in FY27.
• Mgmt expects growth to be supported by Semaglutide traction in India.
• Mgmt guided for the FY27 EBITDA margin to be in a 20-21% range.

Jefferies on Alkem Labs

• Maintain buy; Cut TP to Rs 6,500 from Rs 6,550.
• Q4 beat, FY27 growth intact but cost pressures cap margin gains.
• India grew in-line; US and RoW outperformed.
• Mgt. guided for steady growth in FY27 with stable margins amid cost pressures.
• India outperformance to be driven by new launches and better chronic mix.

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