BSE PSU index hits 52-week high; BHEL, CPCL, MRPL rally up to 17% in 1 week

In the past one week, PSU index has outperformed the market by gaining 1.5 per cent, as against 0.4 per cent decline in the BSE Sensex.

Price movement of PSU stocks

 

Public sector undertaking (PSU) shares were in demand, with the BSE PSU index hitting a 52-week high of 20,623 in Friday’s intra-day trade led by PSU banks and selec other state-owned companies.

 

The BSE PSU index surpassed its previous high of 20,612.37 touched on December 6, 2024. It had hit a record high of 23,018.87 on August 1, 2024.

 

At 10:05 AM; BSE PSU index was up 0.33 per cent at 20,593.05, as compared to 0.01 per cent rise in the BSE Sensex. In the past one week, the PSU index has outperformed the market by gaining 1.5 per cent, as against 0.4 per cent decline in the benchmark index.

 

Union Bank of India, Canara Bank and Indian Bank from the banks, and Chennai Petroleum Corporation (CPCL) and Mangalore Refinery and Petrochemicals (MRPL) were up in the range of 2 per cent to 5 per cent.

 

In the past one week, CPCL, MRPL, Bharat Heavy Electricals (BHEL), Hindustan Petroleum Corporation (HPCL), Indian Oil Corporation (IOCL), Bharat Petroleum Corporation (BPCL) and Steel Authority of India gained between 6 per cent and 17 per cent.  CATCH STOCK MARKET UPDATES TODAY LIVE

Why PSUs outperform the market?  

 

Public sector banks and state-owned companies have reported healthy earnings in their September 2025 quarter (Q2FY26) results announced thus far.

 

Among individual stocks, CPCL hit a fresh 52-week high of ₹919.70, gaining 3 per cent in intra-day trade. In the past six trading days, the market price refineries & marketing company has rallied 23 per cent.

 

CPCL said the recent movement in the volume of shares of the company is market driven. The company said it has duly informed the Stock Exchanges, from time to time, all events and information as required to be disclosed.

 

Meanwhile, CPCL delivered outstanding operational results during July to September quarter (Q2FY26), achieving a crude throughput of 3.013 million metric tonnes (MMT), compared to 2.098 MMT in the corresponding quarter of the previous financial year. This reflects an impressive capacity utilisation of 114 per cent, highlighting the company’s operational efficiency and superior plant reliability, the company said.

 

In Q2FY26, CPCL reported a profit after tax of ₹732 crore, as against a loss after tax of ₹629 crore during the same quarter last year. The Gross Refining Margin (GRM) for the quarter showed a substantial improvement, rising to $9.04 per barrel compared to a negative $1.63 per barrel in the corresponding quarter of the previous year.

 

Shares of Canara Bank hit a multi-year high of ₹136.10, up 2 per cent in intra-day trade. In the past two trading days, the stock rallied 6 per cent after the bank reported a 19 per cent year-on-year (YoY) rise in net profit to ₹4,773.9 crore in Q2FY26, driven by improved asset quality and higher other income, which grew 41.6 per cent YoY. Asset quality strengthened as GNPA and NNPA ratios fell to 2.35 per cent and 0.54 per cent, respectively, while PCR improved 270 bps to 93.6 per cent. 

 

Shares of BHEL extended its upward movement, gaining 2 per cent to ₹265.60 in intra-day deals. In the past one week, the stock has surged 15 per cent after strong Q2 results.

 

The brokerage firms see more upside in BHEL stock. Nuvama Institutional Equities retained its ‘BUY’ rating on BHEL with a target price of ₹353 per share. The brokerage firm expects FY26 to be a clean-up year with legacy low margin projects nearing completion, enabling FY27 margin rebound as new orders gain pace and operating leverage kicks in.  Analysts expect EBITDA margins to rebound to 14 per cent by FY27–28E (4.4 per cent as on FY25) on sharp operating leverage benefits ensuing from execution of ₹ 2.2 trillion order book (80 per cent power mix) and another 25–30GW in pipeline over next 18–36 months.

 

Good accretion of orders and strong ordering pipeline will keep order inflows strong coupled with strong pick in execution from FY26E onwards. This will also help margins and return ratios to improve meaningfully over the next 2-3 years. Hence, analysts at ICICI Securities said they rate the stock BUY with fair value of ₹310 (30x FY27E EPS).