Fund House and Brokerage Highlights
Brokerages maintained a largely neutral to positive stance on HUL, with Jefferies and Goldman Sachs reiterating Buy and targets of Rs 3,050 and Rs 2,850 respectively, citing medium-term growth potential and steady margins despite GST disruptions. Macquarie and MS maintained Neutral/Equal Weight with targets of Rs 3,000 and Rs 2,335, highlighting margin support from the upcoming ice cream demerger. CLSA remained cautious with an Underperform rating and Rs 1,966 target, citing muted near-term growth.
For Colgate, Jefferies and Nuvama stayed positive with targets of Rs 2,700 and Rs 2,870, noting that destocking from GST rate cuts was transitory. Nomura and CLSA highlighted weak Q2 volumes and price pressure, while ICICI Securities maintained Sell, calling the business structurally fatigued.
Laurus Labs saw mixed commentary — DAM Capital remained optimistic with a Buy and Rs 1,083 target, citing strong CDMO traction and improving margins. However, Kotak and Goldman Sachs retained Sell calls due to valuation concerns, while Jefferies raised its target to Rs 700 but kept Underperform.
Sector Views
Morgan Stanley’s note on the Auto sector cited strong Navratri-period data, with PV and 2W retail sales up 17% and 20% YoY respectively — Maruti Suzuki and Hero MotoCorp gained the most market share. MS expects OEMs to signal price hikes in Q2. In Energy, MS said the tight global refining environment is manageable and that lower Brent prices should sustain India’s refining earnings cycle, retaining HPCL and RIL as top picks.
Other Key Updates
- Citi on Oil expects Brent to average near $60 in 1QFY26, with bearish balances through 4QFY25.
- Citi also flagged strong defence procurement momentum with Rs 2.51 lakh cr approvals YTD, benefiting BEL, HAL, and L&T.
- Nuvama on Cipla maintained Hold with Rs 1,725 TP, factoring in new opportunities from its tie-up with Eli Lilly for GLP-1 drugs.
- Bharat Forge (MS, TP Rs 1,050) remains steady with new defence orders offsetting export headwinds.
- Goldman Sachs cut its target on Ola to Rs 62 while maintaining Buy, citing market share moderation.
Corporate and Market Highlights
- Federal Bank board approved a Rs 6,196 cr preferential issue to Asia II Topco XIII Pte Ltd.
- Vedanta announced a Rs 1 lakh cr investment plan in Odisha with 1 lakh jobs promise.
- Gulshan Polyols and Coastal Biotech bagged ethanol supply orders worth Rs 1,185 cr and Rs 361 cr respectively under EBPP FY26.
- Sagar Cements posted a loss of Rs 44.17 cr but reported 27% YoY revenue growth.
- Shipping Corp. of India privatisation is reportedly on hold amid geopolitical uncertainties.
- Paper stocks gained 7% after South India’s Q2 numbers showed strong margins.
- Nifty Metals hit record highs with Hindalco, Vedanta, and Nalco in focus after aluminium prices crossed $2,850/tonne on LME.
IPO and Dividend Tracker
Midwest Ltd listed today. Upcoming IPOs include Orkla India MTR, PhysicsWallah, Lenskart Solutions, and Groww. Ex-dividends today include LTIMindtree, Cyient, Kajaria Ceramics, IRFC, and Accelya Solutions.
Overall, the tone remains cautiously optimistic as fund houses look past transient GST headwinds, focusing on H2 volume recovery and margin stability. The metals and ethanol-linked names are expected to remain in focus, with a mild positive bias for Nifty opening 43 points gap up.
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