PNC Infratech bags Rs 1,458 crore order from NHAI; stock climbs 6%

Shares of PNC Infratech climbed nearly 6 per cent to Rs 304 per share in Friday’s intra-day trade, after the company bagged an order worth Rs 1,458 crore from National Highways Authority of India (NHAI) on Thursday, September 8.

At 1:55 pm, shares of PNC Infratech traded at Rs 293 apiece, up 2 per cent on the BSE. In comparison, the BSE S&P Sensex was up 0.2 per cent at 59,832 levels. In the past three months, the stock has rallied over 15 percent, as against a 7 per cent surge in the S&P BSE Sensex.

The construction and engineering company signed a concession agreement between NHAI and Sonauli Gorakhpur Highways, a Special Purpose Vehicle incorporated by the company to implement the Hybrid Annuity Mode (HAM) project.

The 1,458 crore Uttar Pradesh highway construction project is around 79 kilometers in length and is estimated to be constructed in 24 months, upon an appointed date and operated for 15 years, post construction. CLICK HERE

Earlier, in the April-June quarter of financial year FY23 (Q1FY23), the company clocked Rs 1,758 crore revenue from operations, up 40.5 per cent from Rs 1,251 crore, in the corresponding quarter of previous fiscal (Q1FY22). Profit-after-tax (PAT), on the other hand, climbed nearly 79 per cent year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 166 crore in Q1FY23 from Rs 93 crore in Q1FY22.

The management has retained their revenue growth guidance at 15 per cent for FY23 on the back of a healthy pace of execution and hopes of higher supply orders from Uttar Pradesh. Besides, the company foresees margins in the range of 13 to 13.5 per cent in FY23 post moderation of key input prices.

Meanwhile, analysts at Anand Rathi remain bullish on the stock, retaining a ‘buy’ stance on the counter, with a target price of Rs 383 per share.

“The company’s steady ongoing pace of execution enabled its promising start to the year. We expect the momentum to continue as project execution proceeds and recently added orders will contribute in the year. PNC Infratech’s steady core-EPC margin in a high-cost context indicates the company’s efficiently-managed value chain,” the brokerage firm said in a recent note.