Auto Stocks Trade Mixed Ahead of November Sales Numbers

The auto shares are trading mixed ahead of the November sales data due to be released during the day. At 10:50 am, the Nifty Auto index was trading absolutely flat at 8,886.75. On the stock-specific front, Bosch, MRF, Eicher Motors and Tata Motors gained 0.7 per cent to 1.7 per cent each on the NSE, while Hero Motocorp, M&M and Maruti Suzuki shed 0.6 per cent to 0.9 per cent each.

Auto companies had reported rise in passenger vehicle sales for the third straight month, in October, buoyed by heightened demand during Navratri and Dussehra festivals, and recovery in economic activity following easing of lockdown curbs.

Maruti Suzuki had reported rise of 19.8 per cent in total domestic sales to 172,862 units in October, as against 144,277 units in the corresponding period last year. M&M had reported a 1 per cent increase in domestic sales of passenger vehicles, at 18,622 units in October compared to 18,460 units in the same month last year. And Bajaj Auto’s domestic sales stood at 281,160 units in October 2020, as against 278,776 units in October last year, up 1 per cent.

Tata Motors shares have been on an uptrend in recent weeks, gaining around 20 per cent in the past 16 days alone. The shares of Tata Motors are trading flat, with a positive bias, at ₹ 180.90. CLSA had recently retained a buy call on the auto major, with a target price of ₹ 220 per share.