Metal stocks zoom up to 13% this week. Is there more steam left?

During the week that ended Friday, metal and mining stocks hogged the limelight despite a mixed performance in the September 2022 quarter.

Base metals prices gained after a Bloomberg report bolstered hopes of a quick relaxation to China's zero-Covid 19 policy.

The report said China is working on plans to scrap a system that penalises airlines for bringing virus cases into the country, sending metal stocks zooming.

Even technical charts are suggesting there is momentum in the sector. Shilpa Rout, Derivatives - Lead Analyst, Prabhudas Lilladher said metals could soon see a turnaround move.

In the metal and mining pack, Vedanta topped the gainers with a 13% rally despite its profit slipping 60.8% to Rs 1,808 crore in the September quarter compared with Rs 4,615 crore in the year-ago quarter.

Nuvama Institutional Equities expects December to be a weak quarter for Vedanta amid persistently lower prices, the absence of hedging, partially offset by lower CoP and higher volume.

Cost savings in aluminium via 3mtpa alumina expansion in FY24E, aluminium expansion at Balco and usage of captive coal provide midterm visibility on earnings growth, it said with a buy rating and a target price of Rs 355 on the stock.

Steel Authority of India (SAIL) rallied 7%, whereas Hindalco Industries jumped 6% during the week. Both companies are yet to announce their results for the September quarter.

Aluminum and shares of metal producers were in focus following the news that the Biden administration is considering a ban on Russian aluminum in response to Russia’s military escalation in Ukraine.

Jindal Steel & Power, National Aluminium Company and JSW Steel rose 5% each during the week after the hopes of strong demand for metals.

JSW Steel disappointed the Street by posting a loss of Rs 848 crore for the quarter ended September, whereas Tata Steel's consolidated bottomline nosedived 87% year-on-year (YoY) to Rs 1,514 crore.

BoBCaps Research maintained a buy on Tata Steel but trimmed its target price to Rs 125 from Rs 140 earlier, whereas CLSA downgraded it to sell with a target of Rs 90. Citi remains neutral on JSW Steel with a target price of Rs 625.

APL Apollo Tubes and Coal India were other gainers that delivered positive returns. Motilal Oswal has a 'buy' tag on APL Apollo Tubes with a target price of Rs 1,330 on the counter.

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