SECTOR: TEA
Mcleod Russel India Ltd
STOCK INFO.
BLOOMBERG
BSE Sensex :16,900
S&P CNX : 5,191
(Consolidated)
Y/E MARCH
MCLR@IN
REUTERS CODE
28 October 2011
Initiating Coverage
(Rs CRORES)
BUY
Rs251
MCLE.BO
FY11A
FY12E
FY13E
We recommend to BUY Mcleod Russel India Ltd with one year
price target of
Rs
320(11xFY12E).
INVESTMENT ARGUMENT:
Total Income (RsCr)
EBITDA (Rs Cr)
PAT (RsCr)
BV/Share (Rs)
EPS (Rs)
EPS growth (%)
P/E (x)
P/BV (x)
EV/EBITDA (x)
Div yld (%)
ROE (%)
1,299
390
249
87
22.39
6
11.2
2.9
7.7
2
28
1,505
460
305
108
27.87
24
9.0
2.3
6.5
4
29
1,552
469
325
127
29.68
6
8.5
2.0
6.4
4
25
KEY FINANCIALS
Shares Outstanding (cr)
Market Cap. (Rs cr)
Market Cap. (US$ m)
Sales CAGR 3 Yrs to FY11 (%)
PAT CAGR 3 Yrs to FY11 (%)
10.9
2,747
549
22
74
STOCK DATA
52-W High/Low Range (Rs)
Major Shareholders (as of March 2010)
Promoter
Domestic Inst & Govt.
Foreign
Public & Others
Average Daily Turnover(6 months)
Volume
Value (RsCr)
1/6/12 Month Rel. Performance (%)
1/6/12 Month Abs. Performance (%)
295/191
46
7
31
16
305,452
8
-6/2/16
-8/-13/-3
Maximum Buy Price :
Rs
Rs258
World's Largest Producer of Black Tea:
MRIL is the world's
largest producer of black tea (96m kg in FY11), accounting for ~8%
of India's and 2.5% of the world's total black tea production. The area
under its cultivation exceeds 38,000 hectares, spread across India
(Assam and West Bengal), Vietnam, Rwanda and Uganda.
Growing domestic consumption; high entry barriers:
India's tea
consumption has grown at CAGR of 2.5% whereas production has
grown at 1.8% over FY02-11E. Export surplus has continuously declined
since 2002 (-2% CAGR), leading to 9% CAGR in tea prices. Availability
of cultivable land for tea is very limited, which acts as a huge entry
barrier. During YTD 2011, India's total production has increased
marginally and prices have moved up by 10% YoY. Even a little supply
disruption leads to high price increases.
(See exhibits 1 and 2 on
page 2)
High operating leverage:
Tea production has high operating leverage,
which ensures disproportionate profits in case of increase in prices.
MRIL's production cost/kg and operating profits have grown at a
CAGR of 7% and 65%, respectively since 2006, while prices have
increased at a pace of 13%. We expect production cost and prices to
grow 6% and 9%, respectively in FY12.
Payouts likely to increase:
MRIL has used the surge in its net profit
to deleverage itself. It has reduced debt-equity from 54% in FY06 to
17% in FY11, resulting in a 6x improvement in return ratios and 5x
increase in dividends during the period. We expect payouts to increase
further, as the company will become debt-free in FY12.
Upside from treasury stock:
MRIL has 2.7 crore treasury shares
(market value: ~Rs675 crore), held in a trust controlled by the CFO,
which is shown as part of promoter shareholding. We are neither
factoring in any cash from this share sale nor any valuation upside due
to this.
Valuations and View:
MRIL is available at 11x/9x of FY11/FY12E
EPS and at an EV of ~Rs300/kg, which is attractive since the global
benchmark for such assets is ~Rs400/kg. We believe that the downside
to the stock is limited, given the company's low leverage and firm tea
prices.
We recommend Buy, with a 12-month price target of
Rs
320
(11x FY12E EPS).
Rakesh Tarway
(rakesh.tarway@motilaloswal.com); Tel:+912230896679