Hindalco, L&T & more: Top stocks to watch on February 18

InCred has downgraded Hindalco to reduce from add with the target price cut to Rs 631 from Rs 785. Analysts said peak aluminium prices do not bode well for Indian operations. Higher capex will lead to leveraging of the balance sheet. They also expect Hindalco’s earnings before interest, taxes, depreciation and amortisation (EBITDA) expected to decline to Rs 26,000 crore in FY28 from Rs 36,600 crore in FY26.Macquarie has an outperform rating on L&T with the target price at Rs 4,620. Analysts said L&T is divesting its Nabha Power Plant, which is part of its long-term strategy to exit non-core and asset-heavy businesses. They don't expect the sale to have a material impact on target price since this transaction, along with the planned sale of Hyderabad Metro, is expected to help improve the balance sheet and capital allocation. Company is incrementally looking at investing in new-age businesses.JP Morgan has a neutral rating on Torrent Power with the target price at Rs 1,525. Analysts said the company announced acquisition of Nabha Power from L&T for Rs 6,900 crore. The plant has 13 years of residual power purchase agreement, land and basic infra available for 800MW additional capacity and possibility of renewing PPA for 10-15 years more at mutually agreed terms given solid technical health of its equipment. Analysts view the acquisition as financially incrementally positive for Torrent Power given reasonable valuations and possibility of upside over longer term due to capacity expansion and additional PPA post expiry of the current one.Citigroup has downgraded Ola Electric to sell from buy with the target price halved to Rs 27 from Rs 55. Analysts said persistent headwinds to volume growth exist and EV penetration in the Indian 2W sector has been more sluggish than expected. They also feel GST cuts have further slowed electrification. Ola has lost market share, hampered by service issues, high competition, and adverse customer perception. They also said its Q3 results were below estimates due to negative operating leverage. They, however, acknowledged impressive gross margin trends, and said better operating leverage could boost EBITDA. Management’s efforts to improve product/service quality could take some time to fructify, they said.Nuvama maintained its buy rating on Ahluwalia Contracts with the revised target price of Rs 1,147 from Rs 1,154 earlier. Analysts said the company’s revenue and margins improved on an annual basis on the back of steady ramp-up in execution on key projects. Its order book remained robust, they said. Elongated construction ban in the NCR region due to pollution issues has now virtually become a recurring factor every year.(Disclaimer: Recommendations and views on the stock market, other asset classes or personal finance management tips given by experts are their own. These opinions do not represent the views of The Times of India)