May 26, 2026

TOP NEWS

War update: US forces in Hormuz said they have attacked missile launch sites and mine-laying vessels in southern Iran and called it as self defense attacks. Iran’s official has travelled to Qatar to discuss points on the peace deal and also have cautioned that though there is some progress but do not consider it as imminent. On the other side, Trump has dramatically raised the stakes, demanding that a clutch of Muslim-majority nations formally recognize Israel by joining the Abraham Accords as part of any final settlement. Oil remains flattish at $ 98/ barrel, Gift nifty indicates a cut of 87 points where as Asian markets open mixed with Japan down 162 points and other markets marginally up.

KSH International: Net profit increased by 87% yoy to Rs 34 crore. Revenue was up by 100% to Rs 1020 crore. Margins at 5.5% vs 6.93% in Q4FY25. The company is well-positioned to capitalize on the booming transformer market in India, driven by energy transition, AI data centers, and global grid upgrades, with projected capacity tripling to ~300 GVA by FY28. Positive

Pace Digitek: For Q4FY26, revenue surged 61% YoY to ₹1,097 crore and PAT jumped 88% YoY to ₹106 crore. EBITDA for the quarter more than doubled, rising 114% YoY to ₹163 crore, with margins improving to 14.9%. The company’s executable order book stood strong at ₹11,338 crore, with the energy segment contributing ₹8,854 crore and telecom/ICT contributing ₹2,484 crore. Positive

Hitachi Energy: Net profit was higher by 80% to Rs 330 crore vs 183 crore in Q4FY25. Revenue grew by 46% to Rs 2754 crore. EBITDA jumped 75% yoy to Rs 416 crore. Margins improved to 15.1% compared to 12.6% in Q4FY25. Separately, the company approved an additional investment of Rs 2,000 crore to set up, among other projects, a greenfield large power transformer facility at Karjan in Vadodara, Gujarat  taking cumulative capex to Rs 4,000 crore. Q4 orders received Rs 2422 crore up 11% yoy majorly contributed by data center orders. Total order book stands at Rs 29555 crore.  Positive

Pine Labs:  Revenue up 17.0% at Rs 701 crore versus Rs 599 crore. Pine Labs reported operating revenue of Rs 700 crore in the March quarter of fiscal 2026, up 17% from Rs 598 crore a year back, primarily driven by growth in its international business and expansion of its product suite beyond simple merchant payment processing. Positive

Rail Vikas Nigam Q4 (Consolidated YoY). Profit tanks 58.9% to Rs 187.1 crore Vs Rs 455.4 crore. Revenue rises 4.2% to Rs 6,695.9 crore Vs Rs 6,427.1 crore. Other income falls to Rs 85 crore Vs Rs 187.4 crore. Negative

Bharat Electronics: The company has received additional orders worth Rs 608 crore since May 5. Major orders received include communication equipment, avionics, an information fusion centre, a coastal surveillance radar system, seekers, jammers, tank subsystems, laser-based fuzes, simulators, medical electronics, batteries, spares, and services.

JSW Steel has informed that it has executed a strategic Memorandum of Understanding (MoU) with Bharatia and Carbon Iceland International in order to collaborate on the development of a large-scale green methanol project in India.

Macro Wrap

Global markets were subdued amid holiday-thinned trading, with attention focused on evolving US–Iran dynamics. US President Trump ramped up pressure on Saudi Arabia and Qatar to join the Abraham Accords as part of a broader push tied to an interim Iran deal, describing participation as “mandatory” for regional countries. His inclusion of Pakistan, Turkey, Egypt, and Jordan adds geopolitical complexity to the framework. Meanwhile, softer moves in Brent crude and bond yields appear driven by thin liquidity as US and European markets were closed on Monday.

Iran is reportedly seeking guarantees from China before proceeding, even as US and Israeli aircraft are said to have struck Iranian vessels near Larak Island and Israel signals it will step up attacks on Hezbollah

Guinea, controlling over one-third of global bauxite supply, is set to introduce new export measures, heightening aluminium market volatility. With shipments already surging to 183mt and accelerating this year, any policy shift could materially disrupt supply dynamics. Sentimentally positive for Aluminium prices.

Brent plunged more than 7.0% d/d to $96.14/barrel, and in tandem with this, Eurozone sovereign bond yields also fell amid easing concerns over inflation. The 2Y German bund yields fell 11bps to 2.53%, and the 10Y by 9bps to 2.94%.

The US dollar softened, retreating against all of its G10 peers, with the DXY down 0.2% to 98.99. West Texas Intermediate crude fell sharply, down 6.5% to US$90.30/bbl, amid signs the US and Iran were progressing toward an agreement to reopen the Strait of Hormuz. Gold increased 1.4% and copper gained 1.1%. Bulk commodities were firmer, with iron ore up 0.5% to US$106.40 per tonne, coking coal up 4.7%, and thermal coal flat.

Datawatch: We get US housing data including FHFA house price index for Mar, 1Q house price purchase index, and 20-city composite home price index for Mar (Bloomberg est -0.06% m/m, 0.90% y/y from -0.05% m/m, 0.90% y/y in Feb). Conference Board consumer confidence survey for May (Bloomberg est 92.0 from 92.8 in Apr) and there will also be various regional Fed Reserve’s manufacturing and services surveys.

INVESTMENT CALL

Stock Update: Shree Cement– Capacity expansions plans intact

Reco: BUY     CMP: Rs. 615            Target: 770

• Q4 numbers were subdued, yet above expectations, with revenue/EBITDA/PAT beating  estimates by 3%/8%/22%, respectively.
• Company’s long-term capacity target of 30 MTPA by FY30 remains intact.
• FY27 Industrywide demand seen at ~6%, and company hopes to exceed the same.
• We maintain our Buy rating while lowering our price target to Rs. 717, reflecting

Stock Update: Max Financial Services: Q4FY26 result update - Quality on growth along with strong margin performance

•       Q4FY26 APE grew 18% y-o-y to Rs 3,594 crore, driven by protection (up 19% y-o-y), PAR (up 13% y-o-y) and ULIP (up 12% y-o-y)

•       Q4 VNB margins grew 18 bps y-o-y to 28.2%, despite GST headwinds; FY26 VNB grew 26% y-o-y to Rs 2,647 crore with margin at 25.2%.

•       Embedded value grew 15% y-o-y to Rs 28,871 crore; operating RoEV stood at 18.7%; AUM up 8.4% y-o-y to Rs 1.89 lakh crore with solvency comfortable at 194%.

•       The company is demonstrating high-quality, sustainable growth along with strong margin profile. Maintain BUY with revised PT of Rs. 2,000.

Viewpoint: Samhi Hotels Q4FY26 (Consolidated) result update – Soft Q4; outlook stays bright

View: Positive                  Reco. Price: Rs. 163                 Upside Potential: 29%

• Operational performance lagged estimates on all fronts, hit by multiple headwinds. Revenues grew 8% y-o-y, while EBITDA margin (post-ESOP) fell 630 bps y-o-y.
• FY27 revenue growth seen at 10-11% with EBITDA margin expected to improve to 38% versus ~34% in FY26.
• The current pipeline of hotels requires a capex of ~Rs. 2,200 crore over FY27-FY31, to be funded by free cash flow generation. Capex for FY27 and FY28 is seen at Rs. 250-270 crore per year, primarily allocated to the W Hyderabad, Westin Bangalore, and minor renovations.
• Stock trades at 7x/6x its FY27E/FY28E EV/EBITDA, respectively. We stay Positive with a 29% upside.

Valuation (Consolidated)                                                   Rs. crore

Results (Consolidated)                                                                               Rs. crore                                                   

Stock update: Emami Q4FY26 (Consolidated) result update – Seasonality, geopolitical disruptions hit Q4

Reco: Buy                  Reco. Price: Rs. 404                 Price Target: Rs. 520

• Q4FY26 numbers lagged estimates on all fronts, with revenues/adjusted PAT declining 4%/12% y-o-y, respectively. OPM fell 260 bps y-o-y to 20.2%.
• Management eyes double-digit growth in summer brands (Navratna and Dermicool) in H1FY27; international business to deliver good double-digit growth from Q2FY27.
• Strategic subsidiaries grew 34% y-o-y in Q4FY26 and management aims for a sustained 30% y-o-y growth and a ~15% y-o-y absolute EBITDA improvement in FY27.
• Stock trades at 19x/17x its FY27E/FY28E EPS, respectively. We maintain a Buy with a revised PT of Rs. 520.

Valuation (Consolidated)                                                   Rs. crore

Results (Consolidated)                                                                               Rs. crore                                                   

Stock update: ITC Q4FY26 (Standalone) result update – Cigarette, agri business to stay stressed in near term

Reco: Buy                  Reco. Price: Rs. 302                 Price Target: Rs. 355

• Standalone net revenue fell 6.9% y-o-y, OPM rose by 533 bps y-o-y to 40%, leading to adjusted PAT growth of 4.9% y-o-y.
• FMCG-Others business clocked strong revenue growth and rise in margins, cigarette business was affected by a change in tax structure, while multiple headwinds impacted agri business. Paper business’ performance continued to improve.
• Near-term outlook is cautiously optimistic on the prolonged West Asia conflict, downside risks from cigarette taxation and potential slowdown in rural demand if the El Nino worsens.
• Stock trades at 19x/17x its FY27E/FY28E EPS, respectively. We maintain a Buy with a revised PT of Rs. 355.

Valuation (Standalone)                                                   Rs. crore

Results (Standalone)                                                                               Rs. crore                                                   

OTHER NEWS

Lemon tree hotels has signed a licensed agreement viz. Lemon Tree Hotel, Kumbakonam in Tamil Nadu. The property shall be managed by Carnation Hotels Private Limited, a wholly-owned subsidiary of Lemon Tree Hotels Limited. The Hotel will feature 66 well-appointed rooms, a multi-cuisine restaurant, banquet hall, meeting room, swimming pool, spa and fitness center. This milestone addition brings the group’s footprint in the state to 8 hotels comprising 6 operational and two upcoming properties including this hotel.

Brigade Enterprises : The company has  signed a Joint Development Agreement (JDA) for a premium residential project in Kompally, Hyderabad, with an estimated revenue potential of ₹850 crore. The project will be developed on a 5.6-acre land parcel and is aimed at catering to rising demand for premium housing in North Hyderabad. The company highlighted Hyderabad as a key growth market and said it plans to invest around ₹5,000 crore across residential, commercial, hospitality, and retail segments in the city over the next 3–4 years. This is positive for Brigade as it continues to strengthen its Hyderabad presence through asset-light expansion and premium project additions