1. BSE:
This exchange stock rose 22% over the past week after UBS initiated coverage with a ‘Buy’ rating and a target price of Rs 5,350. The brokerage anticipates a share price upside of around 12%, believing the market has not fully priced in the shift in trading volumes from NSE.
BSE fueled this rise in trading volume by shifting Sensex’s expiry day from Friday to Tuesday. This change increased its market share from just above 16% in December last year to over 22% in February.
BSE nearly doubled its Q3 revenue and net profit compared to the same period last year. Transaction charges, which form the bulk of its revenue, jumped 157% YoY. Operating expenses rose 86% YoY. This was mainly because of higher contributions to the core settlement guarantee fund – the exchange increased its contribution to the guarantee fund after SEBI introduced a new methodology for computing the minimum corpus requirement.
Discussing growth in the equity segment, MD & CEO Sundararaman R said, “We are working with market participants (discount brokers) to ensure a level playing field so clients can choose the exchange based on the best price for execution.” He emphasised that once fully implemented, this change will give BSE a 50-50 chance of handling retail orders.
Forecaster projects the firm’s revenue to grow by around 50%, driven by market share gains. Net profit is expected to rise four times in Q4 compared to the same period last year. UBS analysts see the company’s mutual fund distribution business as a key growth driver and project a 37% CAGR in revenue over FY25-27.
2. KEC International:
This heavy electrical equipment manufacturer made headlines today after CBI arrested its Deputy General Manager Suman Singh and Power Grid General Manager Uday Kumar for corruption. Kumar was caught taking a Rs 2.5 lakh bribe, while Singh allegedly favoured certain contractors. The FIR names five individuals, including KEC Vice President Jabraj Singh and the company itself.
Despite this, the company has surged by 24.9% over the past week after it received new orders worth Rs 1,267 crore across its businesses on March 15.
KEC International’s transmission and distribution (T&D) business won 800 kV HVDC and 765 kV transmission line orders from Power Grid Corp, and supply of towers, hardware, and poles in the Americas. Its cables business won an order to supply various types of cables and conductors in India and overseas.
During Q3FY25, KEC International reported a 33.8% YoY increase in net profit at Rs 129.6 crore. Revenue grew 6.8%, reaching Rs 5,349.4 crore. EBITDA margin expanded by 85bps to 7%.
The company’s order intake jumped 115.2% to Rs 8,600 crore in Q3, driven by strong growth in the T&D, civil, and renewables segments. YTD inflows now stand at Rs 25,000 crore, boosting revenue visibility. Trendlyne’s Forecaster projects KEC’s revenue to grow by 12.3% YoY in Q4FY25.
Vimal Kejriwal, the MD & CEO, said, “With a solid and diversified order book and L1 (orders where the company is the lowest bidder) of over Rs 41,000 crore, better execution visibility, a stable cost environment, and a robust tender pipeline, we are well positioned for sustained growth in the coming quarters”.
With a strong order pipeline in place, the focus now falls on the execution of projects. KEC International also expects strong T&D opportunities in Saudi Arabia and Abu Dhabi to drive international orders while maintaining a wait-and-watch stance on US orders.
Axis Securities maintains its ‘Buy’ rating on KEC International and sets a target price of Rs 1,040. The brokerage believes the company’s strong order book offers healthy revenue visibility for the next 18-24 months. The government’s focus on T&D and the Jal Jeevan Mission extension till 2028 further support its growth prospects.
3. Steel Authority of India:
This PSU steel manufacturer has gained 8.9% in the past week following two major announcements. Steel Authority of India (SAIL) plans to invest Rs 30,000 crore to double the capacity of its Rourkela Steel Plant (RSP) to 9 million tonnes per annum (MTPA). After the expansion, RSP will produce about 25% of SAIL’s total target of 35 MTPA by 2030.
Meanwhile, the Directorate General of Trade Remedies (DGTR) has recommended a 12% safeguard duty on certain steel imports for 200 days, to support domestic producers. This decision follows the US imposing a 25% tariff on steel imports. With US export options becoming limited, major steel-producing countries like China, Japan, and South Korea may look to dump their excess steel into India. This could lead to a surge in imports and put pressure on domestic steel manufacturers. To counter this, the safeguard duty has been proposed.
SAIL’s earnings are highly sensitive to hot rolled coil (HRC) and coking coal prices. The company’s management expects coking coal costs to decline by Rs 1,000/t in Q4FY25 (current Rs 15,0000/t) due to lower imported coal prices. At the same time, HRC prices rose by over Rs 1,100/t (currently Rs 50,000/t) in early March. Higher HRC prices and lower coking coal prices boost profitability.
Meanwhile, the company aims to reduce debt and maintain a stable debt-to-equity (DE) ratio during its expansion. Executive Director of Finance Praveen Nigam said, “Borrowings will be reduced to around Rs 30,500 crore by FY25-end from the current Rs 32,600 crore, aligning with FY24 levels. We expect the DE ratio to remain at 1:1, peaking at 1.2:1 during the expansion phase.”
Axis Securities has upgraded its rating to ‘Buy’ with a target price of Rs 130. The brokerage noted that capital expenditure for the next phase of expansion will begin in H2FY26 and could peak in FY28-29. They expect steel price spreads (price-cost gap) to drive profitability.
4. Dr. Agarwals Health Care:
This eye hospital chain surged 3.9% on March 20 after Motilal Oswal initiated a ‘Buy’ call with a target price of Rs 510, citing the significant market share shift from unorganized to organized players in the eye care industry.
Dr. Agarwals Health Care (DAHL) has an estimated 25% market share among organized players in FY24. The company provides eye care services, including cataract and refractive surgeries, diagnostics, consultations, and non-surgical treatments. The company also sells optical products such as glasses, contact lenses, and eye care-related pharmaceutical products.
In Q3FY25, the company reported a revenue growth of 28.7% YoY to Rs 443.4 crore and its net profit increased 12.7% YoY to Rs 22.3 crore. The growth was driven by an increase in surgical volumes, a shift towards high-end procedures, particularly in cataract surgeries, and a 19.3% YoY increase in patient footfall over 9MFY25. The company added 12 facilities in Q3, with a focus on expanding its reach in underpenetrated regions.
DAHL is actively expanding into underpenetrated regions like North India (Punjab, Jammu) and West India (Maharashtra, Gujarat) while also planning to enter non-core states such as Delhi-NCR, Uttar Pradesh, Odisha, and Madhya Pradesh. Adil Agarwal, Director and CEO of the company, said, “In the fourth quarter, we have already launched three new facilities. Looking ahead, in Q4, we are targeting to launch another 8 to 10 additional surgical facilities and seven primary facilities.”
The brokerage expects a CAGR of 21% in revenue and 23% in EBITDA over FY25-27, reaching Rs 2,490 crore and Rs 690 crore, respectively, driven by growth in surgical volumes and pharmacy revenue.
5. Welspun Corp:
This iron & steel pipes manufacturing company touched a new 52-week high of Rs 856 on 20th March. On March 17th, the company won new orders worth around Rs 2,400 crore for supply of coated pipes for gas pipeline projects in the USA. With these new orders, the company's consolidated order book stands at approx. Rs 20,000 crore, to be executed in FY26-27. On February 24, the company incorporated its new wholly owned subsidiary, Welspun Europe in Spain. The subsidiary will be focusing on all types of conduits and systems for the transport of fluids.
The company announced its Q3FY25 results on February 5. In the quarter, its net profit surged 131.7% YoY to Rs 674.7 crore, fueled by a reduction in raw material costs. However, its revenue decreased by 23.2% due to decline in plastic products segment revenue. The company’s revenue beat forecaster estimates by 12% due to growth in its steel products segment. It appears on the screener for stocks with strong momentum.
Vipul Mathur, Managing Director of Welspun Corp, said, “I would like to emphasize that for the first nine months, our consolidated EBITDA reached Rs 1,356 crore, compared to our full-year FY25 guidance of Rs 1,700 crore. This clearly shows that we are on track to exceed our guidance for the second consecutive year, despite global challenges and concerns. We have a strong order book exceeding Rs 15,000 crore as of Q3, and in line pipes, our combined order book for India and the USA stands at nearly 8,66,000 tons, valued at over Rs 12,000 crore. ”
The company has invested Rs 1,700 crore in Saudi Arabia for an LSAW (Longitudinal Submerged Arc Welding) plant that manufactures large-diameter pipes. Vipul Mathur said, “The main incentive in Saudi Arabia is its market. We're observing strong return ratios, and we're expecting a payback period of no more than three to four years for this investment.”
JM Financial recommended a ‘Buy’ rating on Welspun Corp with a target price of Rs 940, citing robust demand outlook from the US market. The brokerage highlighted that the company’s net debt in Q3FY25 sharply reduced to Rs 100 crore as compared to Rs 530 crore in Q2FY25 on the back of better operational cashflows. It notes that all the company’s projects including Saudi Arabia and US remain on track.
Trendlyne's analysts identify stocks that are seeing interesting price movements, analyst calls, or new developments. These are not buy recommendations.
