India’s largest electric vehicle manufacturer Tata Motors has made a strong debut in the stock markets. The company’s shares rose 3 percent to Rs 829. Although the company’s shares remained weak in the second quarter, it was completely below experts’ estimates. The company’s net profit fell 11 percent to Rs 3,343 crore compared to the same quarter last year. This was due to weak performance in the Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) unit and the commercial vehicle segment. Apart from this, Tata Motors made a cautious comment. The statement said, “We are cautious about domestic demand in the near future.” However, it is expected to pick up due to the festive season and substantial investment in infrastructure. Brokerage firms are bullish despite a slowdown in the second quarter on all fronts, but they have also reduced price targets for the automobile giant. CLSA has upgraded Tata Motors to ‘outperform’ with a target price of Rs 968 per share, a 20 per cent gain from the previous close. The brokerage firm noted that Tata Motors is confident in its Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) guidance, projecting strong EBIT margins for FY25 and FY26. While the company is cautious about commercial vehicles (CVs), it expects new launches in the passenger vehicle (PV) segment to drive growth. Nomura has maintained its ‘buy’ rating on Tata Motors, lowering its target price from Rs 1,303 per share to Rs 900 following a weaker-than-expected Q2 performance. However, the firm highlighted that JLR’s guidance has been retained, with a strong rebound expected in the second half of FY25 Jefferies has also retained a ‘buy’ rating on Tata Motors, but revised its target to Rs 1,000 from Rs 1,330 per share. The firm reports that JLR is expecting a better second half and has maintained its margin guidance for FY25. However, Jefferies noted a slowdown in both CV and PV demand in India and consequently lowered its FY25-27 earnings estimates by 2-9 per cent. In contrast, UBS has a ‘sell’ call on Tata Motors, lowering its target to Rs 780 per share. According to UBS, the JLR and CV segments have underperformed, although PV sales were in line with expectations. The brokerage expressed concern over the quality of reported EBIT. The company is targeting strong growth in passenger vehicle retail growth led by recently launched models and targeted marketing campaign. The management said external challenges slowed things down in Q2, notably the flooding incident at the Nivelles facility, which restricted production to 86,000 units. “Despite this, we still achieved solid profitability, which underlines the resilience of our business. We are well set for a strong rebound in the second half,” JLR CFO Richard Molyneux said. Tata Motors share price has fallen 23 per cent in the last three months.
