Stock Market Live Updates 26 April 2024: Market to remain positive despite confused global signals

Citi on Bajaj Fin

Buy Call, Target Cut To Rs 8,675

Q4 Earnings, Despite Being Impacted 4% By Regulatory Restrictions, Were In-line

Co Trimmed FY25 Guidance Bridging Premium FY24 RoA To Long-term Guidance In FY25 Itself

Co Guides For 30-40 bps NIM Moderation In H1FY25

Co’s Guidance Assumes Lifting Of Regulatory Restrictions In Near Future

Building In 30 bps NIM Compression, Credit Cost Of 1.7-1.8% & 26-27% AUM Growth

Cut Earnings Estimates By 7%/7% For FY25/26

Jefferies on Bajaj Fin

Buy, TP Rs 9260

Profit of Rs38bn, +21% YoY, was in line with est.

Strong AUM growth of 34% was partly offset by lower NIMs, so NII grew by 28%.

While RBI’s embargo affected 4Q perf., expect relaxation in 1/2 qtrs.

Trim est. by 2-3%

Jefferies on Laurus Labs

Underperform Call, Target Rs 250

Missed Estimates Yet Again With Another Weak Quarter For CDMO

Mgmt Provided More Color On The Animal Health And Agrochem CDMO Contracts

Mgmt Believes Animal Health & Agrochem CDMO Contracts Will Scale-up Only Beyond FY26

Till FY26, Co’s EBITDA Margins Will Remain Under Pressure

Cut FY25/FY26 Estimates By 15%/3% On Lower CDMO Sales

GS on Laurus Labs

Sell, TP cut to Rs 325

CDMO growth slower than expected, ltd visibility on ramp-up in FY25;

Lower FY25-FY27E EPS est. by up to 8% to factor in Q4 miss, slower topline/ margin development & revised biz outlook

EBITDA margin below est at 16.8%

MS on Cyient

Overweight Call, Target Cut To Rs 2,250/Sh From 2,400

Q4 Shows Softer Than Expected Rev Guide But Resilience In Margin Relative To Peers

Q4 Shows Reiteration Of Medium-term Revenue Growth And Margin Outlook

MS on L&T Tech

Underweight Call, Target Rs 4,200

Q4 Results Missed Estimates

Weak Revenue Growth Guidance Was Baked Into Buy-side Estimates

A Reset Of Margin Expectations Came As A Negative Surprise

Given Stock’s YTD Outperformance & Cut To EPS Est, Expect To Underperform

CITI on L&T Tech

Sell, TP cut to Rs 4070

4Q rev largely in line, while margins missed

EBIT margins lower largely due to high subcontracting costs

FY25 overall cc rev growth guidance at 8-10% (vs expectation of 10%+)

FY25 margins to be c.16% vs consensus at 18.7%

MS on Dalmia Bharat

Overweight Call, Target Cut To Rs 2,200

Management Sounds Confident On The Medium-Term Outlook

Margin Remain Under Near-Term Pressure Given Weak Prices Over Coming Quarters

JPA Consolidation Is Pushed Out, Which Could Remain An Overhang

Cut Estimates & Price Target To Reflect Poor Results And H1FY25 Outlook

MS on Nestle

Underweight Call, Target Rs 1,990

Co’s Earnings Were Ahead Of Our And Consensus Estimates By 9-10%

See Headwinds To Growth And Margins In FY25

Believe The Two New Business Initiatives Announced Are Positive

MS on Tata Steel

Equal-Weight Call, Target Rs 135

Believe UK Biz Restructuring Update Is A Positive Development

UK Biz Update Positive As Discussions With Trade Unions Was An Overhang On Stock

MS on IndusInd BK

OW, TP Rs 1925

Positives: Asset quality improved, strong retail deposit growth, and strong loan growth.

Negatives: Miss on NII and fees.

Balance sheet is strong with CET-1 ratio at 15.8% & LCR at 118%.

Trim EPS by 2% for F25/F26

Jefferies on IndusInd BK

Buy, TP Rs 1940

Profit of Rs24bn, up 15% YoY, was marginally below estimate.

Stable NIMs and credit quality were key positives, but high opex growth and lower fees dragged profit.

Credit cost reported was at 1.1% of avg loans, but adj for drawdown at 1.5%

HSBC on Tech Mahindra

Hold, TP Rs 1300

New turnaround plan looks sensible, but execution remains challenging, especially in the current environment

Margin expansion is highly contingent on pyramid improvement while maintaining average pricing, which will be tough to deliver

CLSA on Vedanta

Buy Call, Target Raised To Rs 430

Q4 EBITDA Of Rs88bn, Up 3% QoQ Was 6% Above Our Est Largely On Better Zinc & Oil Profitability

Net Debt Reduction By Rs6,000 Cr QoQ On Lower Working Capital Was A Surprise

Commissioning Of Ongoing Projects Across Segments Would Be A Key Earnings Driver

Commodity Price Uptick Will Be Key Earnings Driver

Given Deleveraging Plans At Parent VRL, Dividend Is Likely To Remain Elevated

Co Is A Good Play On The Metals Upcycle With Its Diversified Commodity Exposure

Co Is A Good Play On The Metals Upcycle With Ongoing Capacity Increase/Cash Reduction Projs

CITI on Vedanta

Buy, TP raised to Rs 425 from Rs 305

At Rs87.7bn (5% ahead), Vedanta’s 4Q EBITDA rose 3% qoq largely on lower costs, commodity prices were subdued.

Liability mgmt at holdo gives us confidence around VED India’s balance sheet as well

Every $100/t in zinc-lead LME impacts EBITDA by 2% and fair value by Rs15/sh.

Every $100/t change in ally LME impacts EBITDA by 4% and fair value by Rs30/sh.

Every $10/t change in crude impacts EBITDA by 1.5% and fair value by Rs5/sh

4Q Ebitda of Rs88bn (+3% QoQ) 6% above est. largely on better zinc & oil profitability

Net debt reduction by Rs60bn QoQ a surprise.

Given deleveraging plans at parent, dividend likely to remain elevated

A good play on metals upcycle