Ready for take-off? Analysts map the flight path for India's aerospace stocks

India’s aerospace sector is gearing up for a multi-year growth opportunity, driven by rising air travel, expanding aircraft production, higher defence expenditure and global aircraft manufacturers diversifying their supply chains.

Government efforts to boost domestic manufacturing, coupled with India’s cost-competitive manufacturing base and skilled workforce, are creating opportunities across aircraft platforms, precision components, avionics and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO), according to the All India Association of Industries.

Analysts, meanwhile, believe the sector is on a strong runway, poised for take-off, with rising aircraft production, export growth, new customer wins and MRO expansion emerging as key growth drivers.

Analysts map the flight path

India’s aerospace sector is at an interesting juncture, with growth in aviation, global original equipment manufacturers (OEMs) expanding their Indian sourcing and a push towards defence indigenisation creating opportunities across precision manufacturing, avionics, aircraft platforms and MRO, said Vipin Singhal, director, Anand Rathi Investment Banking.

The key, however, is to look beyond order books, Singhal said.

“Aerospace qualification creates long-term customer relationships, but can also mean concentration risk. Revenue conversion, margins and cash flows will ultimately determine the quality of growth. With valuations factoring in much of the indigenisation and China+1 opportunity, execution will be critical. MRO is another segment worth watching for its potential to generate more recurring revenues,” he said.

Listed companies, he believes, offer different exposures to the opportunity. Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL), for instance, depends on programme execution and delivery schedules, while Data Patterns brings design and electronics capabilities, where proprietary technology matters.

Azad Engineering and MTAR Technologies, meanwhile, are precision manufacturing plays, with growth linked to OEM approvals, programme ramp-ups and their non-aerospace businesses, Singhal said.

Echoing similar views, Putta Ravi Kumar, defence analyst at Choice Institutional Equities, said the sector is entering a multi-year growth cycle, supported by rising air travel, aircraft production and global OEMs diversifying their supply chains.

Precision component suppliers appear particularly well positioned to capture this opportunity, given India’s growing traction in aerospace manufacturing and supply-chain localisation, Kumar said.

Key triggers for the sector, according to Kumar, include rising aircraft production, export growth, new customer wins and MRO expansion. However, execution delays, customer concentration, capacity ramp-up challenges and elevated valuations remain key risks.

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Which stocks are set to take off?

Among listed companies, Kumar is bullish on Unimech Aerospace & Manufacturing, citing its specialised capabilities in aero tooling and precision engineering.

As global aircraft production scales up, qualified Indian suppliers stand to benefit from higher outsourcing and localisation, he said. HAL also offers exposure to India’s domestic aircraft manufacturing opportunity.

“The opportunity is supported by a global aircraft backlog of more than 15,000 aircraft at Airbus and Boeing and India’s ambition to build a US$4 billion MRO industry by 2030. This creates a dual growth opportunity in precision components for new aircraft production and maintenance, repair and overhaul (MRO) as the fleet expands,” Kumar said.

“The bigger opportunity lies in identifying Indian suppliers with specialised capabilities and global customer approvals that can move up the aerospace value chain, not simply betting on rising air travel,” he said.

Disclosure: This article has been written by Kumar Gaurav, who is not a SEBI-registered Research Analyst or an Investment Adviser. Gaurav and their ‘relative(s)’ (as defined under Section 2(77) of the Companies Act, 2013) do not hold any financial interest in the companies mentioned in this article as of the date of publication. The views/recommendations mentioned in this article, wherever applicable, are those of the respective SEBI-registered Research Analyst/brokerage and have been reproduced/reported with due attribution. They should not be construed as the views or recommendations of The Economic Times Digital or the journalist. Readers are advised to consider the original research report and make their investment decisions based on their own assessment. Brokerage disclaimers here