Tata Motors CV an attractive play; Maruti remains top pick in PV space: Dharmesh Kant

Dharmesh Kant, Head of Equity Research at Cholamandalam Securities, on Tuesday outlined his views on Tata Motors' passenger and commercial vehicle segments, along with Ashok Leyland Ltd and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd (MSIL).

"The CV (commercial vehicle) cycle is in play. MSCV (medium & small commercial vehicle) and LCV (light commercial vehicle) sales have been quite encouraging. Valuations are still comfortable compared to, say, Ashok Leyland. So, a trading play is definitely on in Tata Motors' CV business, and we have been recommending that over Tata Motors' passenger vehicles," Kant told Business Today.

"In the passenger vehicle (PV) space, I think Maruti remains the best bet. In the CV space, Tata Motors CV looks quite attractive," he added.

Meanwhile, Tata Motors has announced a price hike of up to 1.5 per cent on its commercial vehicles, effective April 1, to offset rising commodity prices and input costs.

"The price increase is being undertaken to partially offset the impact of rising commodity prices and other input costs. The hike will vary depending on the model and variant," the company said in a statement.

Tata Motors last year completed the demerger of its commercial and passenger vehicle businesses into two separately listed entities. Following the restructuring, the passenger vehicle (PV) business -- including electric vehicles and Jaguar Land Rover (JLR) -- has been housed under Tata Motors Passenger Vehicles Ltd (TMPV), while the commercial vehicle (CV) division continues under Tata Motors Ltd.