Poor Dec sales drag two-wheeler stocks

Stocks of two-wheeler manufacturers such as Bajaj Auto, Hero MotoCorp and TVS Motor Company are being hammered on the bourses after reporting lower-than-expected sales figures for the month ended December 2011.

TVS Motor Company has plunged 10% to Rs 46.90 on the National stock exchange (NSE). The Chennai-based two-wheeler maker reported a 3% drop in m-o-m total vehicle sales of 170,428 units in the month of December, as compared to 1,75,535 units in the previous month. The company had sold total 170,428 units in December 2010.

Bajaj Auto, the second largest loser among the auto pack, down 9%, its sharpest fall in last three years, after the company reported 18% month-on-month (m-o-m) basis drop in total sales to 305,690 units in December 2011, as compared to 374,477 units sold in November 2011.
 
However, India’s second largest two-wheeler maker reported 10% increase in its motorcycle sales on year-on-year basis. The company had sold total 2,76,803 units in the corresponding month last year, Bajaj Auto said in a statement.
 
Hero MotoCorp has slipped 6% to Rs 1,799 on the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE). However, the company is yet to announce its December sales numbers.
 
Meanwhile, the BSE automobile sector Auto index is down 2% or 166 points, compared to 0.4% or 67 points drop in the benchmark index Sensex till 1253 hours.