Business
Consumption, banking stocks offer best value amid market weakness: Sameer Dalal
Dalal noted that while headline indices appear close to lifetime highs, the underlying market tells a different story.
“There are some opportunities in this market. If you look at it, the market has been so concentrated that everyone thinks we are away from the lifetime highs. But if you look at individual stocks, many of them are trading at 52-week lows, and that does throw up opportunities,” he said in an interview to ET Now.
Among his current picks is Titagarh Rail Systems, where he expects multi-year strength as capacity expands and demand remains firm.
“We think the opportunity for them over the next three years is extremely strong. Operations will continue to see an uptick. The new capacities for the wheels will come on board, and you will see profitability scaling up.”
Banks remain another area of conviction. Dalal continues to accumulate IDFC First Bank on dips and has been buying IndusInd Bank as well.
“IDFC First Bank is still barely down a buck or a buck-and-a-half, but if it comes closer to 75, we think it is a great opportunity to continue adding.”He is also backing a recovery in consumption and believes the lag in demand may finally reverse.
“We think the consumption story will eventually pick up. It has probably been long overdue.”
This confidence has led him to accumulate names like Westlife Developers, Devyani International, and Metro Shoes, where he sees a strong premiumisation trend.
“They are bringing in new premium brands that they will scale up, so there is a clear premiumisation play.”
In the renewable space, he continues to add Suzlon and Sterling & Wilson. Dalal also highlighted the sharp fall in Sammaan Capital as a compelling opportunity.
Why Sammaan Capital Has Corrected
Explaining the stock’s decline, he pointed to regulatory overhang. “It has come off for the simple reason that the Supreme Court has directed Sebi to come up with a reply on why they have not taken serious action against certain allegations.”
He added that the company has already addressed the concerns around old related-party loans. “These loans have mostly been repaid in full, and for those that have not been repaid, they have taken the write-off and completed the process.”
Still, he acknowledged the mood remains cautious. “Until this overhang remains, people are going to wonder whether this investment of ₹8,800 crore is going to happen, and that has created some jitters in the system.”
Yet he remains optimistic about the company’s fundamentals. “They are well capitalised at this point in time, so it is not a major concern.”
Aviation Rally Not Convincing
Despite the sharp run-up in aviation stocks such as SpiceJet, Dalal maintains a long-standing stance of avoiding the sector altogether.
“This is one industry that is known to turn billionaires into millionaires.” He argued that aviation is globally fragile and prone to sudden disruptions. “Whenever even a small thing changes, even the best of companies get hit quite hard.”
Pointing to IndiGo’s current operational issues, he said the repercussions could have been far more severe in other markets. Meanwhile, questions about whether SpiceJet could benefit from IndiGo’s troubles don’t sway him. “For me, aviation is something I do not look at… Is it a sector I invest in for the long term? No, I do not.”
