Mumbai, Aug 20 (IANS) – Shares of public sector defence major Hindustan Aeronautics Ltd (HAL) gained 1.82 per cent to ₹4,533 in early trade on Wednesday, following reports that the company is set to secure one of its largest orders from the government.
The stock surged as much as 3.5 per cent to ₹4,605 shortly after market opening, before some profit booking trimmed gains.
The Cabinet Committee on Security has approved the procurement of 97 Light Combat Aircraft (LCA) Tejas Mk1A jets worth around ₹62,000 crore. The indigenous Tejas programme, developed by HAL, is aimed at replacing the ageing MiG-21 fleet. The Mk1A variant comes with enhanced combat features, making this the second major order after HAL’s earlier contract win in February 2021.
HAL shares have gained 26.60 points (0.59 per cent) in the past five sessions and are up 8.72 per cent so far this year. In July, the stock had rallied after the Defence Acquisition Council cleared 10 big-ticket procurement deals worth ₹1.05 lakh crore, all under the Buy (Indian–IDDM) category. These included surface-to-air missiles, electronic warfare systems, integrated inventory management for the Tri-Services, and armoured recovery vehicles.
Global brokerage UBS has maintained a neutral stance on HAL, with a target price of ₹4,900.
Financially, HAL’s Q1 FY26 performance was mixed. Net profit declined 3.7 per cent year-on-year to ₹1,383.8 crore, even as revenue from operations rose 10.8 per cent to ₹4,819 crore. EBITDA jumped nearly 30 per cent to ₹1,284 crore, with margins expanding to 26.7 per cent from 22.8 per cent last year, defying expectations of a fall.
–IANS
