Hot Stocks: Brokerage views on Mphasis, Ashok Leyland, ITC and Piramal Pharma

Brokerage firm Macquarie downgraded Mphasis to underperform, Bofa Securities maintained a buy rating on Ashok Leyland, Nomura has a buy rating on ITC, and Jefferies retained a buy rating on Piramal Pharma

We have collated a list of recommendations from top brokerage firms from ETNow and other sources:

Macquarie on IT sector: Mphasis downgraded to underperform| Target Rs 1510

Macquarie downgraded Mphasis to underperform from neutral earlier and has also slashed the target price to Rs 1510 from Rs 1640 earlier.

The global investment bank maintained an outperform rating on Mastek and raised its target price to Rs 2830 from Rs 2750 earlier.

The brokerage firm expects weak revenue in Q4FY23 to linger into Q1FY24. “Lower estimates to account for a possible US recessionary impact and note enterprise hardware spending is lower,” it said.

BofA Securities on Ashok Leyland: Buy| Target Rs 200
BofA Securities maintained a buy rating on Ashok Leyland with a target price of Rs 200.

“The company has a good strategy at work. Margins: Cost reduction programs to manifest in FY24,” it said.

The global investment bank believes that the CV cycle has more steam left.

“Improving margin/earnings delivery could drive valuation catch-up ahead,” it added.

Nomura on ITC: Buy| Target Rs 485
Nomura maintained a buy rating on ITC with a target price of Rs 485.

According to the brokerage, rural demand continues to improve gradually in Q1 and the management remains watchful on the potential impact of El Nino on rainfall, and consumer sentiment.

“Prices of certain key commodities such as tobacco, sugar, and filters have witnessed increases. Prices of other input commodities such as vegetable oils, crude oil, and palm oil have witnessed moderation,” it said.

“Home and personal care (HPC) products have witnessed some price cuts. The volume growth trajectory remains strong in the cigarette business,” it added.

Jefferies on Piramal Pharma: Buy| Target Rs 115
Jefferies maintained a buy rating on Piramal Pharma with a target price of Rs 115. “The company has a good order book to start but seasonality is key to watch out for,” it said.

“Complex hospital generics may continue to surprise. NCE contracts give further confidence on CDMO turnaround. New employees to improve execution, several sites and new capacity started,” it added.

(Disclaimer: Recommendations, suggestions, views, and opinions given by experts are their own. These do not represent the views of the Economic Times)