L&T hits record high on order win from Technip Energies

Shares of Larsen & Toubro (L&T) hit a record high of Rs 1,648.40, up 1.6 per cent on the BSE in intra-day trade on Friday, after the company’s heavy engineering arm won an order for Oxidation Reactor from Technip Energies-India. However, the company has not yet disclosed order size. The stock surpassed its previous high of Rs 1,647 hit on July 22, 2021.

The order, according to the company, is for the technologically critical Titanium Clad Reactor is for a public sector petrochemical project for purified Terephthalic Acid plant. The scope of supply involves design, material procurement, fabrication, inspection and testing of reactor meeting the licensors stringent quality requirements.

Meanwhile, in the past two trading days, the stock of construction & engineering company has gained 4 per cent after the it announced divestment of 100 per cent stake in its 99 MW hydro power plant located in Uttarakhand to Renew Power for the sale consideration of Rs 985 crore.

This is in line with the declared L&T focus of divesting non-core assets and improving shareholder value, the company said.

"L&T’s resilient operational performance amid second wave of COVID-19 and retaining guidance related to execution, order intake and working capital requirement for FY2022 are key positives emerging out of Q1FY2022 results," analysts at Sharekhan said in result update note.

International outlook, according to Sharekhan, looks promising especially for GCC countries with a pick-up in oil prices and faster recovery from covid-19 pandemic. On the longer term, L&T remains at the forefront to reap benefits from the AtmaNirbhar Bharat Scheme with its diversified businesses across sectors such as defence, infrastructure, heavy engineering, and IT. The company remains the best proxy for domestic capex and its improving business environment, the brokerage firm said.

"L&T has rightly prioritized its balance sheet strength over growth during the second COVID wave. We believe L&T is poised for strong earnings growth momentum, if and when order inflows gain momentum. The company has some more asset monetization opportunities to capitalize on, including the sale of Nabha Power, a stake sale in L&T IDPL, and the monetization of the Hyderabad Metro," said analysts at Motilal Oswal Securities in a recent report.

Larsen & Toubro Limited