Continue to bet on 2 Adani Group stocks; avoid the rest: Sudip Bandyopadhyay

"We have been positive for quite some time on Adani Ports as well as Adani Wilmar and we will maintain that stand," says Sudip Bandyopadhyay, Group Chairman, Inditrade Capital

What is your outlook on the earnings that have kicked in so far and what is the expectation within individual sectors? Are we likely to see a slowdown?
I think we have to go sector wise; IT companies have by and large done pretty well. They have beaten the expectations. Leaving aside the likes of Cyient, look at the results of HCL Tech; after a long time they have surprised the market on the positive side. Wipro was a bit of a disappointment but Infosys again came out with an excellent set of numbers. Mindtree numbers were pretty good too.

In IT, there were a lot of concerns but the results have been fantastic and commentary also continues to remain positive.

The other sector which we are positive on and are waiting for the numbers to start flowing in is BFSI. We saw Federal Bank results was pretty good. We will see the numbers coming from the other biggies there and we believe it will be one of the best quarters for BFSI in recent memory. The asset quality has definitely improved significantly and that will get reflected. The loan growth has been strong and again that will reflect in the numbers. Also, we would see the CASA growth and that will help in the margin improvement overall. So yes, we are very positive on BFSI.

Cement numbers will be a bit subdued because it was a monsoon quarter and so it is on the expected lines. FMCG, probably will be a mixed bag.In some cases, we will see a little bit of pressure on the volume but the margin improvement will probably be seen in almost all the cases as the cost pressures to an extent have been handled well. Either the components of cost have got reduced or the appropriate price hikes or tax wise reduction whatever the case, have been taken by FMCG companies.

So FMCG probably will be doing so-so, nothing great but nothing too bad. We are a little worried about cement because we have seen the outcome of the demand reduction due to the monsoon while cost pressures have been low. As far as metals are concerned, we will watch out carefully. There will be some positives and some negatives and overall with the global economy slowing down I think we have to be approaching this sector with caution.

Do you track the Adani Group of stocks because all of them are coming under pressure as we speak? Adani Wilmar is down 5% after the company reported the Q2 update and yesterday itself the stock had reacted to that. Even power, gas and other Adani names are coming under pressure?
I do track and I maintain my view. We have been positive for quite some time on Adani Ports as well as Adani Wilmar and we will maintain that stand. The way the Adani Group company prices have moved up, I think the least upward movement we have seen and in terms of valuation also Adani Port probably is best positioned for an investor to start buying into.

It is a long-term story. They have a fantastic business going, they have acquired ports strategically on the eastern coast as well and that puts them in an enviable position for the future as far as Indian imports and exports are concerned.

That is a company I am definitely willing to bet on and advise investors to buy into even at current levels. Adani Wilmar again is a company which is efficiently run. It has been doing well. Its brands are pretty well established and over a period of time, they will become a true FMCG company with a diversified product basket and I am willing to bank and back Adani Wilmar even at current valuation. These are the two companies of the group which I would like to buy even now. As far as the other group companies are concerned, there is potential and there are opportunities though the valuation is a bit uncomfortable for me. I do not think I will advise investors to buy in at this stage.