Auto Stocks Jump After May Sales Data; Hero Motocorp, Bajaj Auto Biggest Gainers

Shares of auto companies jumped on Monday after reporting better-than-expected sales for the month of May. Hero Motocorp stock climbed as much as 5.2% in intraday trade to become the biggest gainer among the auto stocks pack, while Bajaj Auto rose 4%. The BSE Auto Index was trading up 1.4% on Monday.

Hero Motocorp, the country’s largest two-wheeler maker, sold 650,000 units in May, up 13.2% compared with 574,000 units sold in the previous month of April. The May sales were, however, down 8% when compared with the year-ago number of 706,000 units. In May, Hero Motocorp had launched three new motorcycles, including the highly anticipated XPulse 200, the XPulse 200T and the Xtreme 200S, the company said in its filing.

Bajaj Auto reported a 3% increase in its sales at 419,000 units for May, against 407,000 units sold in the same month last year, mainly driven by strong motorcycle sales. Motorcycle sales rose 7% to 365,000 units, but three-wheeler sales fell 16% to 54,167 units when compared with the year ago.

Other auto stocks rose, too. TVS Motor shares jumped 2.4%, though the company is yet to announce its May sales data. Tata Motors shares inched up 1% despite the company’s sales dropping in May. Domestic sales fell 26% year-on-year to 40,155 units. Notably, commercial vehicle sales declined 20% to 29,329 units.

Maruti Suzuki India Ltd shares gained 1.7% in intraday trade even as sales declined for the third consecutive month. Maruti Suzuki sold 134,000 units last month, a fall of 22% from May 2018.

Ashok Leyland shares were also trading up 2% after the company said sales fell 4% to 13,172 units in May. Escorts Ltd was also up 1.6% despite posting an 18% decline in tractor sales to 6,827 units in May when compared with a year ago.

Mahindra and Mahindra Ltd (M&M) was trading in the red, with the stock down almost 1.9%. The auto maker reported that sales fell 3% on a yearly basis to 45,421 units in May, according to its stock exchange notification. M&M’s tractor sales fell 16% year-on-year to 24,704 units.