30 January 2015
3QFY15 Results Update | Sector:
Automobiles
Ashok Leyland
BSE SENSEX
29,682
Bloomberg
Equity Shares (m)
M.Cap. (INR b) / (USD
b)
52-Week Range (INR)
S&P CNX
8,952
AL IN
2,845.9
CMP: INR66
TP: INR87 (+32%)
Buy
Significant beat; balance sheet continues to improve; Upgrade EPS/TP
Recovery continues in 3QFY15 for AL, with second consecutive quarter of positive
187.8/3.0
PAT, driven by fourth consecutive quarter of QoQ increase in ASP (despite rising
69/15
discounts) and operating leverage. Management’s focused approach is paying off in a)
1, 6, 12 Rel. Per (%)
21/78/266
market share gains, b) rising ASPs, c) controlled cost, d) reducing working capital, e)
AvgVal(INR M)/Vol ‘000 733/19,295
significant control on capex and f) debt reduction. Strong volume recovery coupled
Free float (%)
61.2
with weak commodity prices would drive significant margin expansion and EPS
growth. Maintain
Buy
with a target price of ~INR87 (9x FY17E EV/EBITDA).
Financials & Valuation (INR Million)
Net sales grew 72.1% YoY (+4.5% QoQ) to INR33.6b (est. INR31.74b) led by volume
Y/E MAR 2015E 2016E 2017E
growth of 38.1% YoY (flat QoQ), while realizations grew 24.6% YoY (up 4.3% QoQ)
Net Sales 135,526 188,076 246,269
driven by higher M&HCV, Buses and Export contribution (despite moderately
EBITDA
10,338 20,643 29,931
higher discounts).
Adj PAT
3,110 10,077 16,956
EBTIDA margin of 7.1% (up 12pp YoY, down 20bp QoQ, v/s est. 6.7%) was aided by
EPS (INR)
0.7
3.5
6.0
higher operating leverage, despite higher RM cost (adverse mix).
Gr. (%)
-140
399
68
Adj. PBT was at ~INR594m (v/s est. ~INR273m). Higher tax rate at 46% restricted
BV/Sh.(INR) 18
21
25
PAT to ~INR321m (v/s est. INR205m).
RoE (%)
4.2
18.0
26.0
Key takeaways from the call:
a) Working capital moderation continues at 9 days or
RoCE (%)
7.4
17.9
26.9
INR4b (v/s INR6.3b in 3QFY14 v/s INR7.8b in 2QFY15), b) 4QFY15 margins could be
P/E (x)
93.0
18.6
11.1
higher by up to ~100bp due to the benefit of excise increase on excise-exempted
P/BV (X)
3.6
3.2
2.6
Pantnagar plant (~35% volume contribution), c) capex (including investments) in
9MFY15 was ~INR900m (v/s guided capex of ~INR5b and d) EBITDA margin target of
12% in the medium term, led by lower discounts and operating leverage.
Estimate change
29-34%
Valuation and view:
We are upgrading FY16/17E EPS by 34%/29% (see Pg.4 for
TP change
42%
details) AL trades at 11.1x FY17E EPS and EV/EBITDA of 6.9x. We now value AL at 9x
EV/EBITDA (v/s 8x earlier), translating into a TP of ~INR87, to reflect the increasing
Rating change
confidence in management’s strategy and prudent capital allocation.
Jinesh Gandhi
(Jinesh@MotilalOswal.com); +91 22 3982 5416
Investors are advised to refer through disclosures made at the end of the Research Report.
Motilal Oswal research is available on
www.motilaloswal.com/Institutional-Equities,
Bloomberg, Thomson Reuters, Factset and S&P Capital.