Brokerage Radar: SBI gets mixed views, ITC bags overweight ratings, experts reiterate bullishness on Bharti Airtel

Brokerage Radar

Check out the latest brokerage calls and analyst comments on the stocks in action today. Our coverage includes Bharti Airtel, ITC, Ramco Cements and more.

UBS On Aurobindo Pharma

Sell Call, Target `1,333/sh

US Oral Revenues Now Close To $300 m A Quarter

Q3 In-Line On Growth & Margin; Outlook Key For Penicillin Ramp-Up

Net Debt Reduced Sequentially From $133 m To $84 m

On CMO Capacity For Merck, Co Has Started Civil Work

Co Plans To Commission CMO Capacity In 2026, First Supplies Expected In 2028

On Biosimilars, Three Product Launches Are Planned In July Quarter

Two More Product Submissions Are Planned In 2025

Citi On Indus Tower

Buy Call, Target `490/sh

Acquires 16.1k Towers From Airtel & Hexacom For UP To `2.1m/Tower)

View Transaction Favourably

Acquisition Would Help Improve Co’s Capital Structure

Acquisition Would Optimise Its B/S Given Negligible Net Debt As Of Dec’24

Believe This Is Prudent Allocation Of Cap, Being Within Co’s Core Area Of Ops

Should Not Have Any Implications For Potential Dividend Payout

Acquisition Will Be Entirely Debt-Funded

Continue To Forecast `18/Sh Dividend With 4q Results

Prima Facie, Implied Valuation Of 6.5x EV/EBITDA Does Not Appear Expensive

Jefferies On BSE

Hold Call, Target `5,250/sh

Settlement Guarantee Fund Drags Earnings

BSE's Q3 Ops EBITDA Expanded Led By Top-Line Growth

Improvement In Margins Led By Higher Options Segment Margin & Lower Opex

SGF Contribution Dragged Earnings & Mgmt Expects Inc Demand To Be Lower

Higher Than Expected Options ADTO Offsets SGF Impact

Cut Est By 3-6%

GS On BSE

Neutral Call, Target `5,650/sh

Q3 EPS Below Est On Materially Higher Contribution To Settlement Guarantee Fund

Higher contribution was triggered by an updated regulatory assessment

Rev 7% ahead of Est led by higher-than-expected transaction charges, listing fee

Mgmt Focus Largely Was On Raised Settlement Fund Contribution

HSBC On SBI

Hold Call, Target Cut To `800 From `880/sh

Q3 Miss On Loan Growth, NIMs & Cost Ratios

Asset Quality Performance Was Healthy

See Muted EPS Growth Over FY25-27 As Higher NIM Pressure Continues

Cut FY25-27 EPS Est By 1.5-5.2%

MS On SBI

Equal-weight Call, Target `865/sh

Asset Quality Remains Strong

Core PPoP Margin Progression Remains Under Pressure

NIMs Declined By 13 bps QoQ & Drove 3% NII Miss

Credit Growth Remains Strong At 14% YoY

Credit Continues To Grow Faster Than Deposits Given Better Liquidity Starting Point

Nomura On SBI

Buy Call, Target `1,000/sh

Mixed Quarter, Soft NIMs, Robust Loan Growth & Asset Quality

Strong RoE Outlook, Valuations Attractive

Soft NIMs & Fee Income Led To Core-PPoP Miss; Lower Credit Costs Aids PAT

Bernstein On SBI

Market Perform, Target `900/sh

Margin Pressure Drives Down RoA To 1% Despite Stable Asset Quality

Loan Growth Was Healthy At 14%

Deposit Growth Remained Weak & Driven By Term Deposits

Asset Quality Improves Further

NIM Declines While NOI Normalises

CLSA On SBI

Outperform Call, Target `1,050/sh

Good Performance On Asset Quality But NIM Compressed

Loan Growth Moderates In-line With System

Decline In NIM Slightly Disappointing But Asset Quality Remains Intact

Deposit Growth Of 10% Was Not Bad But Is Uninspiring

Mgmt Tgts 10-11% YoY Deposit Growth In FY25

It Lowered Deposit Growth Tgt From 11-12% in Q2FY25

MS On Britannia

Equal-weight Call, Target `5,157/sh

Q3 Beat On Volume Growth & In-line Top Line

EBITDA Margin Beat Was A Result Of Lower Employee & Other Expenses

Focus States Grew 2.6x, Outperforming Other Regions

Dairy Drinks, Croissants & Wafers Saw Double-Digit Growth

MS On Bharti Airtel Equal-weight Call, Target `1,650/sh

India Biz Revenue (Excluding Passive Infrastructure) Was In-line With Est

EBITDA Beat Est By 2%

India Net Debt (Excluding Lease Liabilities & Indus Towers) Narrowed By Almost $1bn QoQ

This Reflected Solid FCF Generation In Q3FY25

Steady Growth In Subscribers

ARPU In India Mobile Biz, Along With Sharp Margin Improvement QoQ

HSBC On Bharti Airtel

Buy Call, Target `1,940/sh

Growth Levers Are Intact

Rising Mobile ARPU, Expanding Home Broadband Subs, Rising FCF, & Growth In Dividends

CLSA On Bharti Airtel Outperform Call, Target `1,860/sh

Q3 India Mobile Revenue/EBITDA Up 21%-30% YoY & Indus Consolidation

ARPU Was Up 5% QoQ & 18% YoY & Now 21% Higher Than Reliance Jio’s

Bharti Even Gained 4.9 M Subscribers Versus A 2.9 M Loss Previous Quarter.

Bharti’s Q3 Consolidated FCF After Leases/Capex Were Strong

Nomura On Ramco Cement

Buy Call, Target `1,000/sh

Q3 Lower-than-expected Volume Growth Leads To EBITDA Miss

Blended EBITDA/t Of Down 8% QoQ, Missed Est By 20%

FY26 Capex Guidance Maintained At `1,200 Cr

Management Confident To Reach 30mt By FY26

Net Debt/EBITDA Deteriorated To 3.6x Vs 3.2x In Q2FY25

Jefferies On Ramco Cement

Hold Call, Target `845/sh

Q3 EBITDA Below On Weak Pricing, Even As Co Reported Vol Beat At 9% YoY Growth

Net Debt Moderated QoQ

Believe Region Px Will Continue To Remain Impacted As Acquired Capacities Ramp

Has Also Weighed On Co’s RoC\E Profile/Profitability

Trim Fy25 Ebitda EstBy 4%

CLSA On Ramco Cement

Underperform Call, Target Cut To `795 From `855/sh

Q3 EBITDA Was Below Est, On Weak ASP & Higher Costs

Unlike Its Peers, Its Volumes Fell Attributed To Monsoons

EBITDA/t Fell 8% QoQ, Dragged By Higher RM Costs And Weaker Prices

Net Debt Reduction Was Aided By Monetisation Of Non-Core Assets

Co Intends To Get To 30 mt Capacity By End-FY26

MS On ITC

Overweight Call, Target `578/sh

Topline Was Better Across Segments, Barring Agri

EBITDA Was Weak Across With The Exception Of Agri

Good Growth In Cigarettes Was A Key Positive Surprise

Acquisition Announced In The Fresh & Chilled Deli Meats & Ready To Cook Category

JPMorgan On ITC

Overweight Call, Target `505/sh

Mixed Q3, In-line Revenue But Margins A Tad Soft

Expanding Food Play With Prasuma Acquisition

Valuations Remain Accommodative, At 25x FY26 P/E & 3%+ Dividend Yield

Cigarettes -Volume Led Revenue Growth; RM Inflation Weighs On Margins

Other FMCG-Subdued Margins; Mixed Revenue Performance

Hotels & Agri Do Well; Paper Margin Hit A New Low

Jefferies On Trent

Hold Call, Target `5,800/sh

For Second Qtr In A Row, Co Reported Just In-Line Earnings, Revenues Missed Est

Fashion LFL Was At HSD Even As Co Continues To Expand Stores Smartly

Despite Some Investor Concerns, Reported EBITDA Margin Were Largely Maintained

Stock Surprisingly Corrected 8% Post Results

Stk Corrected Probably As Earning Upgrade Cycle Seems To Have Paused & Valn Is Not Cheap

MS On Trent

Overweight Call, Target `8,032/sh

Slight Topline Miss Was Led By Slightly Weak Fashion Topline

Fashion LFL Growth Was High Single-digit

On A Five-Year CAGR Basis, Revenue Increased 39% In Vs 38% QoQ

Bernstein On Trent

Outperform Call, Target Cut To `6,900 From `8,100/sh

Q3 A Mixed Bag; Stk Down By 8% Yesterday , Think This Is An Over-Reaction

Store Addition Pick-up Is Key Positive

Revenue Growth & Margins Are Positive

Same-store-sales growth Key Disappointment & Debate

Citi On Trent

Buy Call, Target Cut To `7,800 From `9,350/sh

Q3 Operational Performance Remained Strong

Q3 Witnessed Pick-Up In Pace Of Store Expansion

LFL Growth Moderated To High-Single-Digits

LFL Moderation Is Led By Further Slowdown In Discretionary Consumption

Trading at 42x FY27E EV/EBITDA vs Titan/DMart at 36x

MS On Apollo Tyres

Equal-weight Call, Target `515/sh

Consolidated EBITDA Was Broadly In-Line

EU Revenue Of Was 14% Above Estimate

EBIT Was Ahead Of Est, Standalone Biz EBITDA Below Est

HSBC On Power Grid

Reduce Call, Target `270/sh

Reported Profit Was Disappointing

Capex Guidance Increased & New Wins Continue At Expected Pace

Risk Of Overestimation Of Capex Intensity, Commissioning Timelines

Risk Of Poor Project Profitability Yet To Play Out