Cochin Shipyard, Mazagon Dock soar up to 8% on hopes of strong Q2 results- QHN

Shares of state-owned shipbuilding companies Cochin Shipyard and Mazagon Dock Shipbuilders (MDL) rallied up to 8 per cent, hitting multi-year highs in an otherwise subdued market on expectation of strong earnings for the September quarter (Q2FY23).

Shares of MDL soared 8 per cent to Rs 688.60 in intra-day trade on Wednesday. The stock surpassed its previous high of Rs 680, touched on October 10, 2022. The board of directors for the company are scheduled to meet on November 10, to consider and approve unaudited financial results for the quarter and half year ended September 30, 2022. The board will also consider declaration of interim dividend, if any, for the financial year 2022-23 (FY23).

Cochin Shipyard surged 5 per cent to hit a fresh 52-week high of Rs 573.20 in intra-day trade today. The stock crossed its previous high of Rs 567.90, touched on October 28. It had hit a record peak of Rs 598.90 on November 24, 2017.

For Q2FY23E, analysts at ICICI Securities expect Cochin Shipyard to post decent results as Q1FY23 was subdued. Cochin Shipyard is preparing for the next set of orders to be executed.

Garden Reach Shipbuilders & Engineers (GRSE) has also rallied 5 per cent to Rs 477.50 on the BSE. The stock had hit a record high of Rs 488.10 on October 14, 2022. In comparison, the S&P BSE Sensex was down 0.20 per cent at 60,999 at 11:29 AM.

Thus far in FY23, MDL (up 277 per cent), GRSE (201 per cent) and Cochin Shipyard (185 per cent) have seen their market price appreciate by more than 100 per cent, as against a near 4 per cent rise in the S&P BSE Sensex.

MDL is one of India’s four strategic defence shipyards and the only one to manufacture destroyers and submarines in India. GRSE is mainly engaged in the construction of warships. Cochin Shipyard is engaged in two major activities viz., shipbuilding and repair of ships/offshore rigs etc. These are Defence Public Sector Undertaking (DPSU) under the Ministry of Defence (MoD).

The defence shipbuilding segment continues to look promising on account of ambitious acquisition plan of Indian Navy and Indian Coast Guard which is quite encouraging for the Indian Shipbuilders and the entire eco-system. The Government of India has rolled out various initiatives to unlock the true potential of India’s maritime capabilities, and accelerate the growth of our ports and shipping sectors.

The Government of India has rolled out various initiatives to unlock the true potential of India’s maritime capabilities, and accelerate the growth of our ports and shipping sectors.

A number of Requests for Proposals (RFPs) for various shipbuilding projects have been floated by the MoD during last one year and some more are expected to come out in the near future. Further, the MoD plan to increase export of defence products to $ 3.59 billion by end 2024-25 augurs well for all of us, GRSE said in its FY22 annual report.