Stock Market Highlights 24 December 2025: Sensex, Nifty 50 end lower in volatile trade

One of India’s largest edtech platforms, with a broadly equal mix of revenues from online and offline segments

Forecast a 24% FY25-30E revenue CAGR (vs 38% for last 2 years), at mid-to-high end of India internet coverage, with 80%+ EBITDA CAGR over this period (though off a low base)

View this as a function of PW’s strong top of the funnel organic traffic, a relatively benign competitive environment in India’s edtech sector, and PW’s pricing structure that allows it to penetrate deeper into multiple new education categories

Business model also has a negative working capital cycle, and & forecast 100%+ FCF to net income for PW starting FY26.

Avendus Spark on LG Electronics

Initiate Reduce, TP Rs 1536

Despite lower bargaining power & increasing customer choices due to competition, LG’s extensive reach remains a key strength & moat

Robust in-house manufacturing; third facility in pipeline to cater to South Indian market & exports & save logistics costs

Likely to face market share erosion, revenue impact & challenges in its niche premium/super-premium categories due to relatively new entrants

Jefferies on Pine Labs

Initiate Buy, TP Rs 300

Pine Labs is leading digital payments at stores as well as prepaid cards.

It is building a share in online payments & Int’l issuing business.

Its network with brands, merchants, & banks, with tech-platform is the key moat that can drive 23% Cagr in revenue over FY25-28.

Operating efficiency can lift adj. Ebitda margin from 15% to 27% by FY28.

Vals are a discount to peers & can rerate with consistent growth.

Nuvama on Knowledge Marine

Initiate Buy, TP Rs 2500

India’s maritime industry is at an inflection point with unprecedented emphasis on infrastructure creation and inland waterways

KMEW enjoys a 50% order-win rate amid scarce competition & high entry barriers, delivers superior 35–40% EBITDA margin & is diversified across spectrum of dredging/shipbuilding/ancillary services accounting for 43%/11%/46% of balance order book

Nov-25 Order Book (at Rs 17.5bn; 8.7x FY25 sales) is up 2x YoY with orders from major ports, IWAI, DCI & Rs 6.5bn OI for green tugs (GTTP)

Baking in FY25–28E revenue/EBITDA/PAT CAGR of 58%/62%/71% with FY25–28E OI and OB CAGR at 42% each

HSBC on Ambuja Cement

Buy, TP Rs 700

Board has approved the amalgamation of ACC and Orient into Ambuja, with completion expected within twelve months

Management expects operational synergies to drive cost savings of at least INR100/t

See amalgamation as positive

Macquarie on Ambuja Cement

O-P, TP Rs 608

Simplifying corporate structure with merger of cement subsidiaries

Cost optimisation is key focus

Key to track will be

1) approval from ACC shareholders –

2) brand management, given ACC is one of the strongest brands in multiple markets.

Key risks: weaker-than-expected cement demand, delays in Ambuja’s expansion plans and benign cement prices led by competitive intensity in sector

CITI on Ambuja Cement

Buy, TP Rs 625

Board has approved two schemes of amalgamation – merger of ACC and Orient Cement into Ambuja Cements, to be completed within a year subject to approvals

Transaction valuation suggests 1% discount to ACC’s closing price as of 22nd Dec (implied EV/t $73) and 9% premium for Orient (EV/t ~$45 vs. Ambuja’s acquisition cost of ~$100/t). Ambuja’s EBITDA/t improvement target of Rs100 due to merger is already part of their Rs500/t cost reduction target by FY28 exit.

Ambuja and ACC brands will continue to operate as usual

Merger likely helps alleviate investor confusion around which vehicle, growth plans, potential grey areas.

That said, ACC/Ambuja have largely been operating as one company, thus their merger may not change narrative in any significant way.

Investec on RBL Bank

Buy, TP Rs 430

Management meet takeaways

Mgmt intends to deploy $1.5bn of US$3bn infusion to retire high-cost liabilities & expects rating upgrades (AA- to AA+/AAA) to narrow wholesale funding cost gaps vs larger peers

RBK expects to grow loans at 30% in FY27, led by wholesale, prime housing, and a pick-up in unsecured retail.

Under new ECL norms (effective Apr’27), mgmt expects a one-time impact of ₹15–17bn (4% of post-dilution net worth) & a 20–25bps rise in credit costs on a run-rate basis, partly offset by faster secured lending growth

RBK is poised to deliver 27/44% loan/PAT CAGR over FY26-28e (FY27e RoA: 1.4%)

At 1x FY27e P/BV, valuation offers margin of safety

Nuvama on JSPL

Buy, TP cut to Rs 1264 from Rs 1400

Amid double whammy of fall in steel prices & higher CoP, steel spreads are likely to weaken, but bottom in Q3FY26E with EBITDA/t of Rs 8,200, down Rs1800/t QoQ for JINDALST

JINDALST has capacity in place, which shall help deliver a 17% CAGR over FY25–28E.

Higher steel prices shall drive an EBITDA CAGR of 28% over FY25–28E

Cutting FY26E/27E/28E EBITDA by 16%/13%/7% to factor in lower steel prices (still pencilled in Rs 3,000/t average hike in Q4FY26).

However, EBITDA/t will log expansion of Rs 3,500–4,000/t in FY27/28E over FY26E profiting from higher volume, realisation and cost reductions

Jefferies on Cholamandalam

Buy, TP RS 1980

Cobrapost, a journalism portal, has raised concerns around large cash deposits, related party transactions & payouts to agencies.

CIFC has rejected these allegations.

Cash EMI payments are usual for a part of CIFC’s target borrowers who earn in cash.

Related party transactions flagged reflect normal business ops. & are disclosed.

Other concerns flagged seem in line with std practices.

Allegations seem to lack merit.

Mgmt guided for good 3Q disbursement

Morgan Stanley on Cholamandalam

Rating: Equal-weight; Target Price: ₹1,540

CIFC rejects Cobrapost allegations as malicious and baseless

Management says processes are legal, audited and compliant

Financial health, asset quality and liquidity remain robust

3Q disbursements improve; vehicle finance and home loans pick up

Management expects a decent 3Q performance

Cash collections down to ~15% from ~50% historically

Related-party transactions fully disclosed; MMS payout < ₹10 mn

Rating agency fees cited are cumulative over 8 years

MS sees 2HFY26 asset quality improvement; FY27 PAT ~10% below consensus

CLSA on Coforge

Maintains ‘Outperform’ with Price Target of Rs 2275

Fund raise plans

Believe that the stock can react negatively to this news

Investor community typically does not like the uncertainty or the big bets around acquisitions

Last time when the fund raise was announced, the PE multiple had corrected by ~20% over March–April

UBS India Strategy – Portfolio Changes:

Primary driver remains the financial sector, led by banks

Added BHEL and Cognizant Technology to the portfolio, each with a weight of 2 percentage points

Added Hyundai Motor India with a weight of 4 percentage points

Removed M&M, CG Power and L&T Finance

Increased the weights for L&T by 1 percentage point and Axis Bank by 2 percentage points

Reduced the weights for Siemens by 1 percentage point and HUL by 1 percentage point

Nuvama on Kajaria Ceramics

Recommendation: Maintains Hold; Target Price: ₹1,160 (revised from ₹1,318)

Company detected a fraud in the Bathware unit for getting a fictitious vendor approved

Total amount embezzled is around ₹200 mn over the last two years; necessary complaints filed

Company focusing on gaining market share amid a slowdown and volume pressures

Company undertook “Project Manthan” to unify the sales team and improve cost benefits

Expected cost benefits of ₹150 Cr

₹80–90 Cr from raw material negotiations

₹20–25 Cr from manpower rationalisation

₹15 Cr each from reduction in travel expenses and salary forgone by KMP

Morgan Stanley on SBI Cards

Rating: Maintain Underweight; Target Price: ₹700

Post-festive industry spending growth looks largely aligned with pre-festive YTD growth

Strength driven largely by robust spending in the last week of September

22 September marked the onset of GST cuts, Navratri, and e-commerce sales

Observes 14% YoY growth in credit card spending after the festive season, near the 15% YoY seen in Apr–Aug 2025 data

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