Key stocks to Monitor: Adani Group, Mahindra & Mahindra, Zee, Hindalco and BHEL
On Wednesday, February 14, 2024, keeping pace with the subdued signals from international markets, it's anticipated that the Indian main stock indices will commence trading on a negative note. As of 07:10 AM, Gift Nifty futures were hovering around 21,651, suggesting a potential 150-point decline for the Nifty50 at the start of today's session.
Adani Group: Moody's, an American rating firm, has recently upgraded the ratings of four companies belonging to the Adani Group. The upgrade was given following better financial performance, timely repayment of debt, and fresh capital infusion by the group in the past year. The four Adani firms that have received the upgrade are Adani Green Energy Ltd (AGEL), Adani Green Energy Restricted Group-1 (which includes Adani Green Energy (UP) Ltd, Parampujya Solar Energy Pvt Ltd, and Prayatna Developers Pvt Ltd), Adani Transmission Step-One Ltd., and Adani Electricity Mumbai Ltd. The ratings have been upgraded to stable, according to Moody's.
Mahindra & Mahindra: The carmaker is expected to report its Q3FY24 results on Wednesday, and analysts predict that it will post strong double-digit growth in earnings for the December quarter. Net profit for the quarter is expected to rise by 21.2 percent YoY to Rs 2,428.30 crore while revenue is expected to increase by 16.5 percent YoY to Rs 25,216 crore. This growth is due to strong sales volumes in the automotive segment, which will offset the weakness in the tractor segment. It is likely that the operating profit, or EBITDA, has grown by 14 percent YoY to Rs 3,213 crores.
Zee Entertainment Enterprises: The media company's net profit, after consolidating all of its earnings and losses, has increased by 141 percent to Rs 58.5 crore for the quarter that ended on December 31. This is compared to the Rs 24.3 crore that it had earned during the same quarter last year. However, the revenue from operations has fallen by 3 percent year on year to Rs 2,045 crore. Furthermore, the company's earnings before interest, tax, depreciation, and amortization (EBITDA) has declined by 43 percent year on year to Rs 209 crore in the quarter from Rs 366 crore last year. As a result, EBITDA margins have declined to 10.2 percent in the current period, compared to 17.4 percent a year ago.
Hindalco Industries: The flagship company of the Aditya Birla group has reported a 71 percent year-on-year increase in its consolidated net profit for Q3FY24, amounting to Rs 2,331 crore. However, its consolidated revenue from operations for the quarter declined by 1 percent year-on-year to Rs 52,808 crore in Q3FY24. The company's consolidated EBITDA increased by 61 percent to Rs 6,322 crore, with an operating margin of 11 percent. Revenue at Hindalco’s overseas subsidiary, Novelis, fell by 5.58 percent to Rs 32,749 crore in the quarter ending December 2023. Earlier, the company had announced that the cost of the greenfield rolling and recycling plant in Bay Minette, Alabama, will increase from $2.7 billion to $4.1 billion and will be commissioned in the second half of FY27.
Bharat Heavy Electricals: The state-owned company, BHEL, reported a standalone net loss of Rs 163 crore in Q3FY24, which is a significant decrease from the net profit of Rs 31 crore posted during the same period last year. However, there was a notable increase of 4.5 percent in standalone revenue from operations, which rose to Rs 5,504 crore in Q3FY24, compared to Rs 5,264 crore in Q3FY23. Unfortunately, BHEL has been experiencing a decline in its quarterly profit since the fourth quarter of fiscal 2023, and this trend has continued in subsequent quarters. The cause of this decline can be attributed to the challenges faced by the company due to increased costs of vital raw materials such as steel, copper, and rubber.
Eicher Motors: The maker of Royal Enfield motorcycles reported a 34.4 percent YoY increase in consolidated net profit for the quarter ended December 31, at Rs 996 crore. Consolidated revenue from operations rose 12.3 percent YoY to Rs 4,179 crore. Sequentially, the topline rose just 1.6 percent, while the bottom line declined by 2 percent. EBITDA or operating profit grew 27 percent YoY to Rs 1,090.43 crore while operating margin expanded 305 basis points on year to 26.09 percent.
Nuvama Wealth Management: The company's net profit almost doubled to Rs 178 crore in the December quarter, compared to Rs 90 crore in the year-ago period, it stated in an exchange filing on Tuesday. Its revenue rose 38 percent in Q3FY24 to Rs 558 crore, while it rose 29 percent to Rs 1,467 crore for the first nine months of the fiscal. The company's expenses rose 21 percent to Rs 328 crore from Rs 270 crore a year ago, it said. Its Assets Under Management (AUM) stood at Rs 73,855 crore as of December 2023, up Rs 8,000 crore.
Tata Motors: The car manufacturer has announced a reduction in the prices of various electric vehicle (EV) models by up to Rs 1.2 lakh. This move comes as the company aims to pass on the benefits of reductions in battery prices to the customers. Tata Motors has cut the prices of three of its long-range variants of its top-selling Nexon EV by Rs 1.2 lakh each. The new prices start from Rs 16.99 lakh compared to the previous price of Rs 18.19 lakh. The Tiago EV will now start at Rs 7.99 lakh after receiving a price cut of Rs 70,000. However, the prices of the recently launched Punch EV remain unchanged.
Bharat Electronics: The Defense Ministry has recently signed a contract worth Rs 2,269 crores with Bharat Electronics Limited (BEL) to purchase 11 Shakti warfare systems along with the necessary equipment. According to officials, the Indian Navy will install the system on its frontline warships. The Shakti EW system has been developed and manufactured indigenously, and it is capable of precisely intercepting electronic emissions and implementing countermeasures in a dense electromagnetic environment.
Sula Vineyards: The company announced that its third-quarter profit has risen by over 9 percent, from Rs 39.28 crores in the same period last year to Rs 42.98 crores this year. The total revenue has also increased by 4 percent to Rs 218 crore. Moreover, the EBITDA margin has expanded to 33.7 percent from 31 percent last year. Sula has also declared an interim dividend of Rs 4 per share for FY24.
