Analysts raise L&T targets on stellar Q1, share buyback

Separately, the company announced a special dividend and a ₹10,000 crore share buyback, prompting analysts to raise their price targets on the stock.

Shares of the engineering and construction conglomerate touched a record high of ₹2,673.85 before closing at ₹2,652 on the NSE, up 3.56% from the previous close.

Analysts expect L&T to deliver another 17% returns from the current levels.

CLSA, which expected L&T to have a ‘solid’ year at the start of 2023, was positively surprised by L&T’s executive in core business as well as mega renewable energy orders from global clients. The foreign brokerage remains the most bullish on the stock with a price target of ₹3,080 per share.

After market hours on Tuesday, L&T posted a 46.5% year-on-year jump in consolidated net profit, aided by improved operational performance and higher other income.

The company has also approved a share buyback of up to ₹10,000 crore at a price of up to ₹3,000 per share – which implied a 17% premium to Tuesday’s closing price. The board also decided to give a special dividend of ₹6 per share.US brokerage Jefferies said the buyback quantum shows the confidence of the company in future cash flow generation.

Of the 40 analysts tracking L&T, 38 of them have a ‘buy’ rating on the stock, while one remains ‘neutral’ and one recommends ‘sell’, showed a Bloomberg poll of analysts.

L&T was the top gainer among frontline stocks. More than 61 lakh shares exchanged hands on the BSE and NSE, up nearly four times the combined average daily volume over the last month.