Ashok Leyland reverses early gains to trade in red despite strong profit in Q2; Jefferies tag BUY, sees up to 20% upside potential

Ashok Leyland Share Price: Ashok Leyland Ltd (NSE: ASHOKLEY) zoomed 4 per cent in early deals but reversed the gains immediately to trade in negative bias. The stock opened at Rs 152.60, gaining over 4 per cent from the previous close of Rs 146.60 apiece on NSE. At 10:55 AM, the counter quoted Rs 146.15, down by 0.30 per cent.

The stock succumbed to the selling pressure as soon as the automotive manufacturer released its second quarter results for the current financial year.

According to a corporate filing by the commercial vehicle major, the Hinduja group company reported a profit after tax of Rs 199 crore for the July-September quarter, aided by robust sales across segments. It posted a net loss of Rs 83 crore in the September 2021 quarter.

Revenues in the period under review stood at Rs 8,266 crore compared to Rs 4,458 crore a year ago, it added.

Global brokerage firm Jefferies has given a Buy call on the counter with a revised price target of Rs 180.

Ashok Leyland's domestic MHCV (medium and heavy commercial vehicles) volume rose to 25,475 units in the second quarter against 11,988 units in the year-ago period, it said. It helped the company achieve market share gains of 9.6 per cent in the quarter.

Similarly, the company stated that its light commercial vehicle sales volume increased by 28 per cent to 17,040 units against 13,328 units in the same period last fiscal.

Export volumes (MHCV & LCV) for the September quarter surged 25 per cent to 2,780 units against 2,227 units a year earlier.

"Despite global recessionary trends, the Indian commercial vehicle market continues to grow well, the industry has seen strong volumes in Q2 FY23 over the same period last year," Ashok Leyland Executive Chairman Dheeraj Hinduja said. The company sees the demand continuing in all segments of trucks and passenger vehicles and remains confident and optimistic about the future, he added.

"We continue to build competitive products and organisational capabilities for future products using alternate fuels," Hinduja stated.

Ashok Leyland Director and CFO Gopal Mahadevan said that while the company will pursue growth, it wants to do it profitably and sustainably.

"The team continues its focus on operating costs and margins. We have been driving our other businesses like aftermarket, power solutions, Defence and digital customer solutions, which have contributed increasingly to our revenue," he added.

Ashok Leyland stock has gained nearly 16 per cent so far this year. In perspective, Rs 127.70 apiece on January 3, is now available to around Rs 148 a piece. The stock's 52-week range is Rs 169.40 to Rs 93.20.

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