Jefferies upgrades HUL to hold; raises target price to Rs 465

NEW DELHI: Jefferies has upgraded Hindustan Unilever from ‘underperform’ to ‘hold’ rating in its latest report on Thursday.

At 10:20 am, HUL was holding steady in a weak market. The stock was trading 0.2 per cent higher at Rs 447.90. It has hit a low of Rs 447 and a high of Rs 452.30 in trade today.

The brokerage has also upped the price target from Rs 434 to Rs 465. Jefferies feels pessimism is mostly priced in and the downside from current levels is limited for HUL.

HUL has already corrected meaningfully in the last 6 months, equally impacted by higher royalty payments and a weakened earnings outlook.

"While growth could remain mute for a while, we see limited downside from current levels. Moreover, overall trends in the economy point to a broad-based slowdown," said the Jefferies report.

Given its defensive nature and beaten down expectations, the brokerage firm believes HUL is relatively well placed in such an environment.