Analysts see up to 22% upside in Ashok Leyland shares after auto maker's strong Q3 performance, January sales

Ashok Leyland share price: The stock of the auto major jumped by as much as Rs 7.4 or five per cent to Rs 155.1 apiece on BSE. Here's what top brokerages make of Ashok Leyland after the release of the company's sales report for January 2023.

Ashok Leyland share price: Ashok Leyand on Wednesday also released its Q3 results, Pic Reuters

Ashok Leyland shares surged on Thursday, a day after the auto major reported its financial results for the quarter ended December 2022 and released its sales report for the first month of 2023.

The Hinduja group flagship, Ashok Leyland, beat analysts' etimates on all grounds in its earnings report as well as exceeded their expectations on its monthly sales.

Ashok Leyland results

After market hours on Wednesday, Ashok Leyland reported a multi-fold jump net profit to Rs 361 crore for the quarter ended December 2022, from Rs 5.8 crore for the corresponding period a year ago. It saw a jump of 63 per cent in revenue to Rs 9,030 crore compared with the year-ago period.

Its margin — a key measure of profitability for businesses — improved by 480 basis points on a year-on-year basis to 8.8 per cent.

The company beat analysts' estimates on all the three fronts.

According to Zee Business research, Ashok Leyland's quarterly net profit was estimated at Rs 295 crore and revenue at Rs 8,810 crore with a margin of 7.6 per cent.

Ashok Leyland January auto sales

The auto company reported total sales — comprising domestic sales and exports — of 17,200 vehicles in January 2023, up 23.4 per cent on a year-on-year basis.

According to Zee Business research, the auto maker's monthly sales were estimated at 17,000.

What brokerages recommend on Ashok Leyland

Brokerages have laid out target prices in the range of Rs 162-175 for the stock — implying upside potential of about 10-22 per cent from its closing price on Wednesday.