Stocks Watch List: Quess Corp, Hero MotoCorp, Chalet Hotels, LIC, Paytm, RVNL

It is expected that equity benchmark indices will begin this week on a rather quiet note tracking mixed cues from global peers, after registering a weekly record close last week. At 07:30 AM, Gift Nifty futures quoted around 22,114 as against the spot Nifty close of 22,041 on Friday. These are the stocks to watch on Monday, February 19, 2024.

Quess Corp: A recruitment firm has announced its plans to split into three separate entities that will be listed publicly. The three companies are Quess Corp Ltd, Digitide Solutions Ltd, and Bluspring Enterprises Ltd. Quess Corp will be responsible for managing the workforce, Digitide Solutions will provide business process management solutions and insurtech, while Bluspring Enterprises will offer facility management, industrial services, and investments. The demerger is expected to attract investment, improve capital allocation, and enhance growth. Upon completion, all shareholders will receive an additional share of each of the new companies for every share they own in Quess Corp Ltd. The process will take between 12-15 months and will depend on regulatory approval.

Hero MotoCorp: The CEO of a motorcycle manufacturing company, Niranjan Gupta, is predicting that the domestic two-wheeler industry will experience a double-digit increase in revenue in the upcoming fiscal year. He believes that the demand for premium models will also rise. During an analyst call, Gupta stated, "We expect the industry to experience double-digit growth in revenue in the coming year at a minimum, as we have been saying. As far as demand is concerned, we anticipate that it will increase even further".

Chalet Hotels: The company has set an ambitious plan to expand its portfolio of "big-box" hotels, which have a large inventory, with the goal of adding around 800 rooms. The expansion will increase its total room count to 5,000 over the next three to four years. The company's managing director and chief executive, Sanjay Sethi, stated that their strategy is to take advantage of the demand generated by office spaces in proximity to their properties, which will ensure a robust and continuous customer base. The company has earmarked Rs 2,000 crore as current capital work-in-progress to fund the expansion.

Life Insurance Corporation of India: The largest insurer in the country announced that it has received refund orders from the Income Tax Department for a total amount of Rs 25,464.46 crore. The refund orders were for Assessment Years 2012-13, 2013-14, 2014-15, 2016-17, 2017-18, 2018-19 and 2019-20. The Income-tax Department released Rs 21,740.77 crore on 15.02.2024, and the remaining amount of Rs 3,700 crore is awaited as a tax refund. LIC is pursuing the balance with the Income Tax Department.

Paytm: According to a recent report, brokerage firm Bernstein has given an 'Outperform' rating to Paytm, with a target price of Rs 600 per share. The report notes that the Reserve Bank of India's recent actions are mainly aimed at Paytm Payments Bank (PPBL) and do not have any adverse observations on other essential functions of Paytm. This distinction is vital in understanding the extent of regulatory measures affecting the company. Bernstein also highlights that the linking of merchants' operations to a non-PPBL bank is a "major positive" that offers significant benefits to Paytm. Moreover, the brokerage firm appreciates the extension of the cut-off date to March 15, which provides Paytm with a more extended period to implement necessary changes in response to regulatory requirements.

RVNL: According to the management, the Public Sector Undertaking has an order book worth Rs 65,000 crore. Half of this amount is from railway projects. Additionally, RVNL is exploring new projects in offshore markets such as Central Asia, UAE and Western Asia. During an investor call, the management stated that they aim to maintain an order book of Rs 75,000 crore in the future.

JSW Steel: India’s largest steelmaker by capacity will invest Rs 65,000 crore in Odisha to set up one of its biggest manufacturing plants, adding to the country’s efforts to boost production of the alloy. In the announcement made on Friday, JSW Steel said it will establish a greenfield complex in the industrial city of Paradip, which will include a steel plant with a capacity of 13.2 million tonnes per annum (mtpa), a captive power plant, captive jetties with cargo-handling capacity, a cement manufacturing unit, and a modern township. The investment will be in phases. “There will be a total investment of Rs 65,000 crore in this facility and more than 30,000 direct and indirect employment potential", said Sajjan Jindal, chairman of JSW Group, following a foundation-laying ceremony on Friday that was presided over by Odisha chief minister Naveen Patnaik.

Adani Enterprises: Adani Realty has reportedly won the contract to redevelop the 24-acre Bandra Reclamation land parcel, which was put up by the Maharashtra State Road Transport Corporation (MSRDC). The final approval is still pending and will be decided in the MSRDC Board's upcoming meeting. Adani Realty emerged as the "preferred bidder" by offering the highest financial bid, which is 22.79 percent revenue to MSRDC. According to reports, this surpassed Larsen and Toubro's bid of 18 percent. Despite L&T having a stronger net worth of approximately Rs 84,000 crores compared to Adani's Rs 48,000 crores, Adani's higher bid secured the preference.

Lupin: The pharma company in a filing to the stock exchanges said it has received approval from the US drug regulator for its Abbreviated New Drug Application (ANDA) for Minzoya tablets. The tablets are used by women of reproductive potential to prevent pregnancy, the company informed the bourses. The product will be manufactured at the company's Pithampur facility in Madhya Pradesh.

TD Power Systems: Vijay Kirloskar, who is the founding director and a significant shareholder of TD Power Systems, an engineering services company based in Bengaluru, has filed a complaint with the stock exchanges. According to a report, Kirloskar has accused the company of leaving out and hiding important information in the financial results for the quarter ending December 2023. In a letter dated February 3, 2024, Kirloskar, who also serves as the chairman of Kirloskar Electric Company in Bengaluru, asked the bourses to acknowledge that the company’s statement released on February 1, 2024, claiming that there is no legal action initiated by Kirloskar against TDPS is "completely incorrect, contains false information and is a deliberate attempt to withhold crucial information" designed to deceive TDPS shareholders.