Auto index hits 6-month low, Hero MotoCorp at 52-week low

Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra, Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki India are down by 1-3% on BSE.

Shares of automobile stocks are under pressure with many frontline stocks trading lower by up to 3% on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE).

Hero MotoCorp, Tata Motors, Mahindra and Mahindra, Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki India are down by 1-3%.

The BSE Auto index, the largest loser among sector indices, is down by 1.55% or 156 points at 9,915 compared to 0.66% fall in benchmark Sensex at 1029 hours.

The auto index hits a low of 9,885, its lowest value since September 14, 2012, in intra-day trades. The index has underperformed the market by falling 5.2% in current month after most of the top auto makers posted lower local sales for February.

Analyst at J.P.Morgan believes industry growth rates will likely remain weak, given rising fuel prices and muted consumer sentiment.

OEMs are taking production cuts, given elevated inventory levels. Management teams do not expect a recovery in sales over the near term as well, says Aditya Makharia in a recent report.

Hero MotoCorp is the largest losers among individual pack, down around 3% at Rs 1,530. The stock opened at Rs 1,570 and hit a 52-week low of Rs 1,519 on BSE.

“Auto sales number has been dropping off late and Hero MotoCorp is facing huge competition from Honda which is eating market share,” said A K Prabhakar, Senior Vice President - Equity Research at Anand Rathi Financial Services.

Tata Motors too, down 2.56% at Rs 268 on BSE. The company will undertake shutdown from March 27 to April 6 to carry out maintenance of equipment, particularly, in the paint shop,” the PTI report suggests quoting Debasis Ray, Head of Corporate Communications.

Mahindra and Mahindra is down 2% at Rs 847, while Bajaj Auto and Maruti Suzuki India are down by 1% each at Rs 1,777 and Rs 1,284 respectively.