Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles delivered robust growth in October 2026, with total sales rising 23% year-on-year to 75,426 units compared to 61,295 units in the same month last year. According to reports from NDTV Profit, domestic passenger vehicle sales increased 21% to 73,894 units from 61,134 units a year ago, while international business sales stood at 1,532 units compared with 161 units in October 2025. The company's electric vehicle business showed particularly strong momentum, with combined domestic and international sales rising 75% year-on-year to 16,244 units from 9,286 units in the previous year.
Despite the strong sales performance, Citi Research has maintained its bearish outlook on Tata Motors, cutting the target price to ₹270 from ₹305 while retaining its 'Sell' rating. As reported by NDTV Profit, the brokerage cited mounting cost pressures and uncertainty over Jaguar Land Rover's (JLR) transition as key concerns. The revised sum-of-the-parts (SOTP) target price of ₹270 implies a downside of 2.2% from the prevailing share price, reflecting Citi's cautious stance on the stock's near-term prospects. Citi's assessment highlighted a growing disconnect between sales growth and profitability, noting that while healthy industry demand and encouraging market-share gains are supporting volumes in the domestic business, escalating costs are expected to weigh on margins across both segments.
Citi has reduced its EBITDA estimates for Tata Motors' India passenger vehicle business, arguing that healthy volumes are being more than offset by lower margins amid rising cost pressures. According to NDTV Profit, the brokerage has cut the target enterprise value-to-EBITDA multiple for the India PV business to 13 times from 17 times, while maintaining a 10% discount to Maruti Suzuki's implied target multiple. For JLR, Citi has retained volume estimates but lowered margin projections to factor in higher marketing and publicity expenses as new models are launched in FY28 and FY29. The brokerage stated that 'even though our revenue estimates increase slightly, there are sharp cuts in EBITDA estimates,' reflecting the challenging margin environment.
The brokerage's revised SOTP target price factors in changes to estimates, the lower valuation multiple for the domestic business, and a roll-forward of its valuation horizon to March 2028 from September 2027. As reported by NDTV Profit, Citi stated that 'weak domestic margins and uncertainty on JLR's transition prevent us from being more constructive,' highlighting the disconnect between sales growth and profitability. While healthy industry demand and encouraging market-share gains are supporting volumes in the domestic business, escalating costs are expected to weigh on margins across both segments. For JLR, Citi believes higher marketing and publicity expenses associated with new model launches are likely to put pressure on profitability in the coming years.
