Indian stock market and companies daily report (January 19, 2012, Thursday)

The markets are expected to edge higher following positive opening across most of the Asian bourses. The markets ended with modest losses yesterday after investors booked profits. In addition, crucial meeting in Greece between the government and private creditors cautioned the markets.
European stocks also snapped a 3-day winning streak as investors booked profits despite positive news flow from the region. Bond auctions in safe haven Germany and debt-ridden Portugal went off smoothly and IMF intended to raise its lending resources by US$500bn to avoid a contagion of eurozone’s debt crises. US bourses gained on IMF’s arrangement for the eurozone. In addition, better-than-expected quarterly results from Goldman Sachs also boosted the sentiments.
Domestically, some of the many indicators have shown improvement (satisfactory IIP numbers and easing of food inflation). However, the implementation of big ticket reforms, especially in the power sector, remains a key. In an important meeting yesterday, the prime minister has assured to chalk out a road map to resolve the issues faced by the power sector. Investors will closely watch the developments in the power sector, which weighs heavily on the economic growth.

Markets Today
The trend deciding level for the day is 16,451 / 4,956 levels. If NIFTY trades above this level during the first half-an-hour of trade then we may witness a further rally up to 16,518 – 16,585 / 4,981– 5,005 levels. However, if NIFTY trades below 16,451 / 4,956 levels for the first half-an-hour of trade then it may correct up to 16,385 – 16,318 / 4,931 – 4,906 levels.

RIL may announce a share-buyback program
RIL board will consider a share-buyback program on January 20, 2011, alongside its 3QFY2012 results. Given RIL’s cash pile of Rs.61,490cr (as on September 30, 2011) and the recent decline in share price, the buyback program does not surprise us. This move will address the concerns of deployment of cash (partly), thus we believe the buyback will be valueaccretive for shareholders. Moreover, RIL has ~30cr treasury shares, which ifextinguished could be potentially EPS accretive by 9.7%. We await further  clarity on the buyback details and maintain our Buy rating on the stock with a target price of Rs.1,006.

KEC International secures order worth Rs.340cr
KEC International (KEC) has secured an order worth Rs.340cr for the construction of 765kV and 400kV transmission lines in Maharashtra and Gujarat. The order is secured from Bhopal Dhule Transmission company, a wholly owned subsidiary of Sterlite Technologies. The transmission lines are a part of Built-Own-Operate-Maintain (BOOM) project awarded by Power Finance Corporation to Sterlite Technologies.
In a short succession, KEC has pocketed orders worth Rs.1,650cr, which has strengthened its order book to ~Rs.9,340cr (2.0x FY2011 revenue). The latent potential of the company (globally diversified model and healthy return ratios of ~25%) coupled with optimism surrounding the macro environment has factored into the stock – the scrip has rallied ~40% so far in the calendar year. At the CMP of Rs.51, the stock trades at 5.7x FY2013E EPS. We recommend Accumulate on the stock with a target price of Rs.53.

Result Review
MindTree
For 3QFY2012, MindTree reported USD revenue growth of merely 2.3% qoq to US$103.7mn, as volumes declined by 0.8% qoq. However, the company reported a 3.4% qoq increase in price realization due to one-time transition revenue realized from a package implementation deal in Europe. In INR terms, revenue came in at Rs.520cr, up 13.8% qoq. The company’s EBITDA and EBIT margins improved by 438bp and 486bp qoq to 17.3% and 13.9%, respectively, largely on the back of gains derived from INR depreciation against USD. PAT stood at Rs.61cr, up 11.1% qoq, negatively impacted by Rs.2.5cr forex loss. We continue to be positive on the stock and will be releasing a detailed result update shortly.
Infotech
For 3QFY2012, Infotech reported revenue of US$81.7mn, up merely 0.4% qoq, on the back of 2.3% qoq volume growth. The NCE vertical witnessed volume growth of 2.0% qoq, while the ENGG vertical reported 2.3% qoq volume growth. In INR terms, revenue came in at Rs.416cr, up 11.8% qoq, aided by 1) 0.4% qoq volume growth, 2) 1.0% qoq positive impact because of increased price realization and 3) remaining gain on the back of INR depreciation against USD in 3QFY2012. The company reported 484bp and  473bp qoq expansion in its EBITDA and EBIT margins to 20.6% and 17.1%, respectively, aided by qoq INR depreciation against USD. PAT came in at Rs.34cr, impacted by forex loss. The stock is currently under review we will be releasing a detailed result update on it shortly.

Result Preview
HDFC Bank – 3QFY2012
HDFC Bank is expected to announce its 3QFY2012 results today. We expect the bank to report a rather moderate NII growth of 13.9% yoy to Rs.3,162cr.  Non-interest income is expected to register growth of 15.8% yoy, leading to an operating income growth of 14.4% yoy. Due to relatively similar rise in operating expenses (14.6% yoy), pre-provision profit is expected to grow by 14.3% yoy. However, provisions are expected to decline by a substantial 42.5% yoy, leading to a healthy net profit growth of 30.5% yoy to Rs.1,419cr. At the CMP, the stock is trading at valuations of 3.2x FY2013E P/ABV, in our view. We maintain our Neutral recommendation on the stock.
Hero MotoCorp – 3QY2012
Hero MotoCorp (HMCL) is slated to announce its 3QFY2012 results. We expect the company’s top line to grow by healthy 18% yoy to Rs.6,012cr, driven by 11.3% yoy growth in volumes and a ~6% increase in average net realization, led by price increases. Operating margin (adjusted for change in accounting for royalty payments) is expected to expand by 126bp yoy to 12.4% on account of softening of commodity prices. As a result, we expect the bottom line (adjusted) to post a 24% yoy increase to Rs.629cr. The stock rating is under review.
Bajaj Auto - 3QFY2012
Bajaj Auto is scheduled to announce its 3QFY2012 results today. We expect the company’s top line to grow by a healthy 17% yoy to Rs.4,720cr led by 13.6% yoy growth in volumes and increase in average net realization. On the operating front, EBITDA margin is expected to remain largely flat at 20%. Thus, the bottom line is expected to grow by 19% yoy growth to Rs.791cr. The stock rating is under review.

Economic and Political News
- LAC seeks to double trade with India to US$50 bn in 2 yrs
- IEA cuts 2012 oil demand growth forecast
- Finance Minsiter wants US$56/bbl upstream subsidy: Govt. sources

Corporate News
- RCom plans Rs.7,500-cr IPO for Singapore unit
- I-T slaps Rs.1,067 cr tax notice on Bharti
- Sadbhav Engineering emerges lowest bidder for Rs.325cr mining order

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Share Market Update on Central Bank of India for 1QFY2012

Share Market Update on Central Bank of India for 1QFY2012 with a Neutral recommendation.

For 1QFY2012, Central Bank of India posted a 16.6% yoy decline in its net profit primarily due to higher provisions. However, results were above our estimates on lower-than-estimated operating expenses. A sharp sequential dip in NIM and high slippages despite the pending switchover to system-based NPA platform were the key highlights of the results. We maintain our Neutral view on the stock.

NIM dips on lower yield on investments; slippages remain elevated: The bank’s business momentum slowed during the usually lean quarter. Advances declined by 2.8% qoq (up 17.2% yoy) and deposits increased by 3.6% qoq (up 20.3% yoy). CASA deposits growth moderated to 14.7% yoy, resulting in a 259bp qoq decline in CASA ratio to 32.6%. Bulk deposits and CDs constituted a relatively higher ~33% of total deposits. The reduction in CASA ratio and the higher interest rate environment resulted in a sharp 72bp qoq rise in cost of deposits to 6.8%. The yield on advances went up by 77bp qoq to 11.4%. Reported NIM declined sharply by 48bp qoq to 3.0% primarily due to fall in yield on investments (fall of 73bp qoq). The sequential decline in NIM was exacerbated by the benefit of interest on income tax refund of ~`130cr in 4QFY2011. Overall asset quality of the bank deteriorated during the quarter, with annualised slippage ratio remaining elevated at 1.8% (1.1% in 1QFY2011) and net NPAs rising by 27.7% qoq. Slippages remained elevated at 1.8% as compared to 1.1% in 1QFY2011. Provision coverage ratio including technical write-offs declined to 65.2% from 67.6% in 4QFY2011. The bank is yet to switchover to the system-based NPA recognition platform, which could result in a substantial rise in slippages given the bank’s rural branches (37%) and a relatively large agri (16%) portfolio.

Outlook and valuation: At the CMP, the stock is trading at cheap valuations of 0.8x FY2013E ABV compared to its trading range of 0.5–1.5x with a median of 1.1x since listing in 2007. However, due to near-term asset-quality concerns because of system-based NPA recognition, we remain Neutral on the stock.

Share Market Update on Bhushan Steel for 1QFY2012

Share Market Update on Bhushan Steel for 1QFY2012 with a Neutral recommendation.

Strong top-line growth: During 1QFY2012, Bhushan Steel’s (BSL) net sales grew by 62.6% yoy to `2,232cr mainly on account of higher volumes of flat products. Flat products sales volumes grew by 80.2% yoy to 388,790 tonnes, while long product sales volumes grew by 7.6% yoy to 100,664 tonnes in 1QFY2012. Long product average realisation increased by 18.2% yoy to `42,915/tonne, while flat product average realisation decreased by 3.2% yoy to `49,294/tonne.

Depreciation and interest costs mute net profit growth: During 1QFY2012, EBITDA increased by 62.1% yoy to `661cr, representing EBITDA margin of 29.6%, compared to 29.7% in 1QFY2011. EBITDA/tonne increased to `13,505 (US$300) in 1QFY2012, compared to `13,186 (US$293) in 1QFY2011. Depreciation expense increased by 182.4% yoy to `151cr due to increased capacity, while interest expense increased by 173.8% yoy to `216cr because of higher debt. A sharp increase in depreciation and interest costs resulted in net profit growth of only 2.0% yoy (despite 62.1% growth in EBITDA) to `210cr.

Outlook and valuation: At the CMP, the stock is trading at 8.1x FY2012E and 7.1x FY2013E EV/EBITDA, a significant premium over its peers. Although we expect sales volume growth of 24.8% over FY2011–15E, we believe it is too early to play the volume growth story of BSL as strong volume growth is expected only post FY2013. Further, although BSL uses a combination of BF-EAF technology to produce steel, rising prices of iron ore and coal will affect its margins. Moreover, BSL’s debt-equity ratio remains high. Further, we believe the increase in the stock price in the past three months fairly discounts the growth prospects of BSL. Hence, we maintain our Neutral view on the stock.

Share Market Update on ACC for 2QCY2011

Share Market Update on ACC for 2QCY2011 with a Neutral recommendation.

For 2QCY2011, ACC posted a 6.2% decline in its bottom line; however, it was ahead of our estimates. The bottom-line decline was despite higher realisations, as the company faced margin pressure on account of higher power and fuel costs and freight costs. During the quarter, ACC faced the full impact of the domestic coal price hike carried out by Coal India. Realisation was higher as cement prices, which touched the peak in March 2011 remained strong until May.
At current levels, we maintain our Neutral view on the stock.

OPM at 24.1%, down 527bp yoy:  ACC posted an 18.9% yoy growth in net sales to `2,403cr on account of growth in dispatches and better realisation.
The company’s dispatches for the quarter stood at 5.9mn tonnes, up 12.5% yoy, on account of higher capacity (on a yoy basis) operational at Wadi and Chanda during the quarter. However, on a sequential basis, dispatches declined by 3.7%, indicating the lukewarm demand scenario. Realisation also improved by 5.7% yoy and 4.1% qoq to `4,052/tonne.

Outlook and valuation: All-India cement dispatches, which witnessed a marginal decline in 1QFY2012, are expected to pick-up post the monsoons. Demand growth is expected to be driven by infrastructure activities with FY2012 being the last year of the Eleventh Plan. However, the ongoing SFIO investigation on cement pricing might soften the extent of price recovery. We expect ACC to register a 16.0% CAGR in its top line over CY2010–12, aided by capacity addition. However, the bottom line is expected to grow at a lower CAGR of 4.6% over the mentioned period due to higher operating costs. At current levels, the stock is trading at EV/EBITDA of 6.8x and EV/tonne of US$110, based on CY2012 estimates. We maintain our Neutral view on the stock, as we believe it is fairly priced.

Share Market Result Update on Sarda Energy and Minerals for 1QFY2012

Share Market Result Update on Sarda Energy and Minerals for 1QFY2012 with a Buy recommendation and a Target Price of `259 (12 months).

For 1QFY2012, Sarda Energy and Minerals (SEML) reported net sales growth of 17.2% yoy to `254cr. However, adjusted net profit declined by 48.3% yoy to `14cr due to higher costs. We maintain our Buy rating on the stock.

Ferro alloy segment drags SEML’s 1QFY2012 profitability: During 1QFY2012, SEML’s net sales grew by 17.2% yoy to `254cr due to higher realisation in the steel segment coupled with higher sales volume of billets, ingots and power. Blended steel realisation grew by 96.1% yoy to `33,036/tonne on account of improved product mix. EBITDA margin declined substantially by 857bp yoy to 14.4% mainly on account of higher raw-material costs. Thus, EBITDA declined by 26.6% yoy to `37cr. EBIT of the ferro alloys segment declined by 73.0% yoy to `7cr on account of lower realisation coupled with higher prices of key inputs. Interest costs for the quarter increased by 112.6% yoy to `6cr, owing to which adjusted net profit declined by 48.3% yoy to `14cr.

Outlook and valuation: We continue to believe that SEML is well poised to benefit from a) backward integration into coal and iron ore, b) commercial production of pellets and c) increased power and ferro alloy production. Moreover, firm sponge iron and billet prices should lead to higher capacity utilisation in FY2012 and FY2013, thereby leading to higher sales volumes. A key catalyst for the stock would be restarting of its iron ore operations at Rajnandgaon. We recommend Buy with a target price of `259, valuing the stock at 5.5x FY2013E EV/EBITDA.