Maruti Suzuki recovers on a likely hike in car prices

At the day's low of Rs 1415, the stock declined 0.70%.

Meanwhile, the BSE Sensex was down 8.47 points, or 0.05%, to 17,576.40.

On BSE, 78,698 shares were traded in the counter as against an average daily volume of 1.42 lakh shares in the past one quarter.

The stock hit a high of Rs 1444 and a low of Rs 1415 so far during the day.

The stock had tumbled 9.74% in ten trading sessions to Rs 1416.85 on 14 January 2010 from a recent high of Rs 1569.75 on 30 December 2009.

The company's equity capital is Rs 144.46 crore. Face value per share is Rs 5.

The current price of Rs 1433.50 discounts the company's Q2 September 2009 annualized EPS of Rs 78.91, by a PE multiple of 18.17.

As per reports, the price rise would take place in a couple of weeks. The rise in prices is due to escalation of commodity prices, especially of steel and copper, reports suggest.

Maruti Suzuki India reported 50.6% increase in total vehicle sales to 84,804 units in December 2009 over December 2008. Domestic sales rose 36.5% to 71,000 units, while exports surged 223.7% to 13,804 units

Maruti Suzuki, last week, unveiled its brand new model Maruti Eeco at the Delhi Auto Expo priced at Rs 2.59 lakh. Eeco, which will be available in 5-seater and 7-seater versions, is expected to initially sell 40,000 units annually.

Last month, Japan's Suzuki Motor, a parent company of Maruti Suzuki India said it will sell a 19.9% stake in Suzuki to Germany's Volkswagen (VW) for $2.5 billion and use half the proceeds to buy shares in Volkswagen, as the two firms form a formidable force in the auto industry.

According to recent reports, Maruti Suzuki plans to raise production by up to 75% over the next five years in a bid to hold on to its 50% market share.

Maruti is seen reporting robust Q3 December 2009 results on strong volume growth. Maruti Suzuki's Q3 advance tax rose 196.3% to Rs 400 crore.

Maruti Suzuki India's net profit rose 92.5% to Rs 570 crore on a 46.6% increase in sales to Rs 7080.67 crore in Q2 September 2009 over Q2 September 2008.

Maruti Suzuki India is engaged in manufacturing, purchasing and selling of motor vehicles and spare parts.