Stocks to buy, 2025 stock ideas: JM Financial has come out with a list of dozen stocks that it believes can deliver up to 49 per cent returns in 2025, as they offer growth at a relatively reasonable price. The list includes KPIT Technologies, Bharat Heavy Electricals Ltd (BHEL), ZEE Entertainment Enterprises Ltd Cyient DLM, Axis Bank and Maruti Suzuki India Ltd. Others in the list included Havells India Ltd, Metropolis, Global Health, Ahluwalia Contracts, SAMIL and Nippon AMC.
BHEL | Target price: Rs 371 At present, 31 GW of thermal power plants are under construction. JM Financial said the government is in fire fighting mode to control possible power deficit FY26 onwards and is targeting to add 93 GW of thermal power plants by FY32. BHEL received orders for 9,600 MW of thermal power projects in FY24 against 1,320 MW in FY23. During FY25, it has already bagged orders for 10,400 MW of projects.
"Additionally, tenders for 7,960 MW have been issued. With this, it bagged orders worth Rs 31,600 crore (Rs 29,800 crore power, Rs 1,700 crore industry, Rs 100 crore exports) during Q2FY25," it said.
"With a growing and executable order book, pick up in execution (29 per cent YoY revenue growth in Q2FY25) and, improving margins (4.2 per cent/-3 per cent during 2QFY25/2QFY24), the company has regained its growth trajectory. We expect revenue/Ebitda to grow at CAGR of 30 per cent/103 per cent through FY24-FY27E. We have 'Buy' on the stock (currently trading at FY27E P/E of 20), with TP of 371 (35x Sep’26EPS)," JM said.
KPIT Tech | Target price: Rs 2,040 KPIT Tech's Q2 numbers were strong, but a soft H2 commentary and its projection of achieving the lower end of its FY25 18-22 per cent CC revenue growth guidance led to a correction in stock price post results. Onshore to offshore shift of some projects hit revenue growth and JM believes this is transitory.
"A strong deal pipeline with large deals, should aid near term revenue growth. Though there are some concerns on near term spending by OEM’s due to global automotive slowdown, we believe Auto ER&D sector has strong structural industry tailwinds. Within ERD, ‘softwarization’ is likely to see the maximum spending ($47 bullion of cumulative outsourced ER&D spend over the next five years)," it said.
KPIT Tech may still be able to deliver a 17 per cent revenue CAGR over FY24-27 and 22 per cent EPS CAGR, JM Financial said adding that operating leverage and offshoring are the key levers for Ebitda margin expanding from 20.2 per cent in FY24 to 21.3 per cent in FY27.
Zee Entertainment| Target price: Rs 200
Post the Zee-Sony merger falling off, ZEEL pivoted focus on profitable growth. Management guidance is 8-10% revenue CAGR and 18-20 per cent Ebitda margin by FY26, JM said. The broking firm said curtailed losses in Zee5, prudent content spend and lower A&P, have resulted in margin expansion from 10.2 per cent (Q3FY24) to 12.8 per cent (Q1FY25).
"The strategic launch of competitively priced packages for advertisers for GECs and Puneet Goenka himself taking charge of domestic broadcasting business reflects steps towards profitable growth. Now that the merger related settlement is closed, one off expenses should be behind and result in better reported profits," it said.
The stock is currently trading at 13x FY26EPS. For a media company with 17 per cent viewership share, JM thinks the stock is undervalued.
"ZEEL currently trades at 13 times FY26E EPS and 7 times EV/Ebitda, and we have a buy rating on ZEEL with a target price of Rs 200 (15 times 12M forward)," it said.
Axis Bank | Target price: Rs 1,425 JM said Axis Bank’s ability to navigate tight liquidity conditions, moderation in opex, and control on credit costs should help sustain outperformance over peers. The bank’s MD & CEO Amitabh Chaudhry recently received a 3 year extension, ensuring leadership continuity, it noted.
The brokerage said Axis Bank's liability franchise continues to see improvement and this should continue in the medium term. While credit costs in H1 remained elevated, it expects H2 to see moderation. "We remain positive on the name given limited valuation downsides from current levels (core bank trades at 1.6x FY26E BVPS), and is at a meaningful discount of 31 per cent to ICICI Bank’s valuations (core bank trades at 2.1x FY26E BVPS)," it said.
Maruti Suzuki India | Target price: Rs 15,250 JM Financial said Maruti Suzuki India (MSIL), with back-to-back SUV launches, has strengthened its presence in the B-segment, regaining its leadership position with 26 per cent market share. With its tech-agnostic approach, it is well-positioned and also hedged amidst slowing pace of electrification, the brokerage said.
"MSIL’s healthy momentum in Hybrids/CNG portfolio and new launches (multiple strong hybrid models over the coming 2-3 years) is expected to drive better than industry growth. Strong ASP growth owing to this favorable shift in powertrain mix is still underappreciated by the Street and is expected to drive healthy operating leverage," it said. The stock is trading at 18 times FY27E EPS, below its five-year average of 27.5 times, the brokerage noted.
Nippon AMC | Target price: Rs 800 Shares of Nippon AMC or NAM gained from the SMID (small and midcap) rally over FY24-FY25, and its SIP market share has improved from 6 per cent in Q4FY22 to 12.6 per cent in Q2FY25. NAM's growth in equity AUM of 67 per cent in trailing 12-months (Oct-23 to Oct-24) has been highest among listed peers leading to improvement in equity AUM market share by 34 basis points against 20 bps for HDFC AMC and a fall of 46 bps for UTI AMC.
In response to reducing revenue yields, the company has negotiated a variable payout to distributors, which should cushion yields and drive operating leverage, JM said.
"NAM appears fairly valued at 26.8 times FY26e EPS for a PAT to average AUM of 0.28 per cent. Over the medium term, we forecast PAT to average AUM to inch closer to 0.34% levels, as is projected for HDFC AMC," it said.
SAMIL | Target price: Rs 210 While demand environment for global light vehicles has moderated, SAMIL continues to outperform led by higher content per vehicle owing to premiumisation and hybridization, JM said
"Its powertrain-agnostic product portfolio and customer/geographic diversification augur well. Higher profitability has been driving improvement in its RoCE, and a healthy balance sheet with net debt/EBITDA at 1x provides headroom for large acquisitions, their DNA," the brokerage said.
JM Financial expects H2Fy25 will be better than H1 both in terms of volume and margin performance owing to seasonality and cost-inflation pass-through to customers. The Consumer Electronics business (JV with BIEL Crystal) has commenced its operations from November and its ramp- up during H2 is expected to further support growth.
"We believe the company with its global presence, wide customer base and an expanding product portfolio especially w.r.t. an opportunity in consumer electronics and Aerospace presents a multi-year growth opportunity," it said.
Ahluwalia Contracts | Target price: Rs 1,315 Ahluwalia Contracts is a diversified building construction company with a proven track record and a robust order backlog of Rs 16,200 crore -- 3.9 times the trailing 12-month revenue, which provides strong revenue visibility. Lean balance sheet may drive strong RoEs even at average Ebitda margins, JM said.
"FCF generation has been consistent over the past 10 years. We factor an EPS CAGR of 30 per cent over FY24-27E and 43 per cent over FY25-27E driven by strong revenue growth and margin expansion, which is expected to be the result of a better project mix," it said.
Havells | Target price: Rs 2,031
In the short term, ex-Lloyd, consumer demand and growth momentum is expected to pick-up driven by festive demand, pick-up in the real estate and capex cycle. Consumer sentiment has also started improving for the kitchen and domestic appliances portfolio, JM Financial said.
"Over the medium/long term (ex-Lloyd), we expect volumes to grow, basis: (1) pickup in construction activity, (2) demand improvement from tier 2/3 cities, and (3) market share gains. We estimate (ex-Lloyd) revenue CAGR of 15% over FY24-FY27e," the brokerage said.
The stock trades at 52 times FY26 EPS and 42 times FY27 EPS. JM values Havells at PE of 50 times on FY27 EPS, a premium based on its strong brand, distribution, in-house manufacturing, along with now investing in team, market share gain, strong balance sheet and improved ratios. Cyient DLM | Target price: Rs 960 Cyient DLM's revenue has been positively impacted by addition of new logos, global tailwinds and increased offering of value added services. JM Financial forecast margin expansion led by change in mix, and a consequent increasing share from higher margin segments and a higher share of export.
"The company is diversifying revenues via inorganic expansion. Based on these factors, we expect Revenue/EBITDA/PAT CAGR of 44 per cent/54 per cent/66 per cent over FY24-26E with OPM of 9.7 per cent/10.6 per cent in FY25/26. The stock is currently trading at P/E 63x/31x FY25/26E EPS, and we maintain a BUY with a target of Rs 960 at 45 time FY26 EPS," it said.
Metropolis | Target price: Rs 2,500 Metropolis' B2C, wellness and Mumbai market growth has been outpacing overall growth whilst phasing out of discounts, which has aided B2B growth. The reduction in competitive intensity, margin expansion and inorganic expansion suggest a favourable outlook for the company, JM said.
"The stock currently trades at 47 times/39 times our FY26/27E earnings estimates and above 5Y average consensus P/E. We build in an EPS CAGR of 30 per cent over FY24-27E and 25 per cent over FY25E-27E. We value the stock at 50x EPS arriving at a TP of Rs 2,500," JM Financial added.
Global Health | Target price: Rs 1,440 Medanta's upcoming major hospital projects in Noida (FY26), South Delhi (FY28), Mumbai (FY29) and recently announced Pitampura O&M project are expected to be strategically located and will contribute significantly to future growth, JM Financial said. Given its strong emphasis on clinical excellence, high-quality assets, and new developments, the broking firm sees a significant growth trajectory ahead.
"We build in Ebitda CAGR of 19 per cent over FY24-27E and 25 per cent over FY25E-27E. At present, the stock trades at 22.5 times FY27 EV/Ebitda. We value the company at 30 times Ebitda to arrive at a target price of Rs 1,440," it said.