BNP Paribas has initiated coverage on seven Indian power and utilities stocks, turning bullish on CESC, NTPC and Power Grid as it sees the sector entering its next phase of growth. According to the latest report from BNP Paribas, electricity demand growth has accelerated with year-to-date growth at 9% and a two-year CAGR of 6%. The brokerage expects demand growth to remain strong at around 5.5% CAGR through FY26-34, driven by urbanisation, rising consumer-durable penetration and policy initiatives such as electric vehicle adoption, green hydrogen and data-centre development. The Central Electricity Authority's capacity plans point towards greater additions across solar, wind, hydro, nuclear and storage alongside thermal capacity.
CESC emerged as BNP Paribas' highest-conviction call with a ₹230 target price, implying approximately 57% upside from current levels. For Power Grid, BNP Paribas sees transmission capex and the need to evacuate power from new generation capacity supporting the medium-term outlook, with a ₹340 target price implying around 29% upside. NTPC gets a ₹400 target price, implying 22% upside, with its diversified generation portfolio and planned investments supporting growth. These premium targets are attracting investor attention across different market segments as the power sector benefits from rising electricity demand and infrastructure development.
Adani Power has emerged as a key beneficiary of India's thermal capacity expansion with Motilal Oswal initiating coverage with a BUY rating and target price of ₹250, implying a 20% upside from current levels of ₹208. According to NDTV Profit, the brokerage's optimism is based on the company's ambitious growth plans to raise capacity 2.3 times to 42GW by FY32. The company demonstrates solid execution capabilities through its acquisition and turnaround of multiple distressed plants, while benefiting from optionality from nuclear forays and limited competition in the thermal segment. BNP Paribas also sees power distribution as an underpenetrated opportunity, with privatisation and efficiency improvements potentially creating additional avenues for growth.
The consumer goods sector continues to attract positive sentiment with Godrej Consumer Products maintaining multiple BUY ratings across different brokerages. According to ET Now, HDFC Securities maintains a BUY rating with a target price of ₹1,100, while Morgan Stanley and Nomura both maintain BUY ratings with targets of ₹1,204 and ₹1,110 respectively. The banking sector remains in focus with Axis Bank maintaining a BUY rating from Goldman Sachs with a target price of ₹1,477. IDFC First Bank received a NEUTRAL rating from Goldman Sachs with a target price of ₹92.
The automotive sector received mixed signals with Hyundai Motor India maintaining an OVERWEIGHT rating from Morgan Stanley and raising its target price to ₹2,438 from ₹2,131. However, FSN E-Commerce Ventures (Nykaa) was maintained at NEUTRAL by Goldman Sachs with a target price of ₹280. The technology sector saw eClerx maintained at NEUTRAL by Nomura with a target price of ₹1,830, while Adani Ports and SEZ maintained a BUY rating with a target price of ₹2,080.
