BPCL shares climb as Jefferies sees 36% further upside after massive gains of over 45% in one month

BPCL share price: BPCL shares in Friday’s trading marked their fresh all-time high after foreign brokerage Jefferies upgraded the stock to 'buy' from 'underperform'. The global brokerage has raised the target to Rs 890. This implies a significant upside of over 36 per cent.

Besides, Morgan Stanley is also bullish on the counter with an overweight call. It has set the target at Rs 644. 

Furthermore, the oil marketing company (OMC), in response to the media release that the company is setting up its first-ever green hydrogen plant in an Indian airport, clarified that the project is a pilot project aimed at gaining experience in handling hydrogen for the automobile sector with an estimated capital investment of approximately Rs 25 crore.

Additionally, the project is planned in collaboration with Cochin International Airport Limited (CIAL).

Besides, the company also mentioned in the filing that the said information was not material under Regulation 30 since it is a pilot project. It also noted that it would not have any material impact on the company.

In its filing dated February 13, the company stated that a sub-committee of the Board of Directors of BPCL has approved the sale of up to 68,36,948 equity shares held by BPCL ESPS Trust under the BPCL Employee Stock Purchase Scheme 2020 and SEBI (Share-Based Employee Benefits and Sweat Equity) Regulations, 2021.

Simultaneously, the centre has also hiked the windfall tax on crude petroleum from Rs 3,200 to Rs 3,300 per tonne. The windfall tax on diesel has been raised to Rs 1.5 per litre from the earlier nil. For petrol and ATF, it has been held steady at nil.

Alongside, oil refining companies including Reliance Industries, Oil India, and ONGC traded mixed. Reliance Industries and ONGC gained up to 5 per cent, while Oil India shares traded with a cut. 

An increase in the windfall tax for crude products is negative for oil refiners and producers.