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NEW DELHI: Global brokerages maintained their bullish stance on Hindustan Unilever (HUL) after the company on Friday reported a 19.51 per cent rise in net profit at Rs 1,525 crore for the September quarter on account of double digit growth across various categories.
The FMCG major had posted a net profit of Rs 1,276 crore in the same quarter last year.
Morgan Stanley maintained ‘Overweight’ rating on HUL with a target price of Rs 1,260.
Strong margin expansion continues, earnings of HUL beat our estimates by 5 per cent," it said.
Macquarie retained ‘Outperform’ on HUL with a target price of Rs 1,870 per share.
The global financial services firm sees consensus earnings upgrades coming for HUL.
“HUL is flexing muscles on operating leverage.
Demand environment continues to improve," Macquarie said.
CLSA also maintained ‘Outperform’ rating with a target price of Rs 1,750.
"Adjusted Ebitda growth at 24 per cent and volume growth at 10 per cent stood ahead of estimates." It also added that there is cloud on future margins, but management is looking positive.
CITI upgraded HUL to ‘Neutral’ with a target price of Rs 1,660.
“We see more balanced risk-reward after the stock’s correction.
Earnings remain healthy, with demand boosted by rural India (growing 1.2-1.3x urban).
Management noted competitive intensity appears to have peaked as against concerns 3-4 months ago," CITI said.
Sales during the quarter under review stood at Rs 9,138 crore as against Rs 8,199 crore in the year-ago period, up 11.45 per cent, HUL said in a regulatory filing.
The scrip was trading 3.18 per cent down at Rs 1,518.70 at around 9.50 am (IST), while the BSE Sensex was down 88 points, or 0.25 per cent, at 34,645 at around the same time.
