BAJAJ-AUTO

Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO - APPROVED ADDITIONAL FUND INFUSION UP TO 15 BILLION RUPEES IN BAJAJ AUTO CREDIT

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March 13 (Reuters) - Ashok Leyland Ltd ASOK.NS:

• INDIA'S FEB 2-WHEELER SALES 13,84,605 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S FEB 3-WHEELER SALES 57,788 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S FEB TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 3,77,689 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA AUTO INDUSTRY BODY: UPCOMING FESTIVITIES OF HOLI, UGADI IN MARCH LIKELY TO CONTINUE TO DRIVE DEMAND

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March 3 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO - FEB TOTAL SALES 352,071 UNITS

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Feb 11 (Reuters) - Shares of Eicher Motors EICH.NS dropped nearly 7% on Tuesday as the Royal Enfield motorcycle maker's heavy spending on new launches hurt profit margins, with analysts expecting the company's focus on growth to keep the pressure on profitability.

The stock was set for its biggest one-day decline since July 2023 and was the biggest drag on auto stocks .NIFTYAUTO. At least six of the 34 brokerages covering the company lowered their rating on the stock, according to LSEG data.

Eicher's core profit margins missed analysts' expectations on Monday due to higher sales of lower-margin motorcycles such as the 'Meteor 350', heavy spending on new models like the e-bike "Flying Flea", and increased costs, including on promotions in a quarter that included the major Diwali and Christmas festivals.

Elara Securities analyst Jay Kale said though vehicle sales hit an all-time high in the quarter, with growth beating those of rivals, the company's gross profit per vehicle was at a six-quarter low. Kale rates the stock "sell".

Morgan Stanley analyst Binay Singh, who rates the stock "underweight", doesn't expect margins to grow soon.

"Growth over margins is the right strategy, in our view. But with the stock pricing in high growth and high margins, achieving both will be tough."

Eicher's stock has outperformed those of its key rivals, Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS and TVS Motor TVSM.NS, over the past year. Its price-to-forward earnings ratio of 29.3 is sandwiched between TVS's 38 and Bajaj's 26.

However, while six analysts cut their price targets on Eicher's stock, at least 17, or half of all brokerages, raised their targets, factoring in higher core profit from the company's commercial vehicles joint venture with Volvo.

Analysts' median 12-month target is now 5,409.50 rupees on the stock, implying a 6% upside to the current price of about 5,102 rupees, per LSEG data.

Their average rating is "hold" on Eicher, while they rate both Bajaj and TVS "buy".

(Reporting by Manvi Pant, Additional reporting by Meenakshi Maidas; Editing by Savio D'Souza)

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Feb 6 (Reuters) - Indian tyre maker MRF MRF.NS posted a near 40% fall in third-quarter profit on Thursday, as higher rubber costs outweighed steady demand for tyre, sending its shares more than 3% lower.

Standalone net profit was 3.07 billion rupees ($35.06 million) in the quarter ended Dec. 31, missing analysts' average estimate of 4.2 billion rupees, according to LSEG data.

Revenue from operations rose 13.8% to 68.83 billion rupees, beating analysts' average estimate of 67.33 billion rupees, while total expenses increased 20.6%.

MRF makes tyres for vehicles of Hyundai Motor India HYUN.NS and Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS, among others.

For further earnings highlights, click (Full Story)

KEY CONTEXT

Prices of rubber, a key raw material for tyre makers, rose in the December quarter, analysts said. Cost of materials consumed rose 23.8% to 46.34 billion rupees for MRF.

Total vehicle sales in India rose 3.1% year-on-year in the reported quarter, compared with a 19.5% jump in the year-earlier period. This weighed on tyre makers such as MRF, which depend on auto sales for a big chunk of their revenue.

Meanwhile, replacement demand, where customers change old or worn-out tyres with new ones, along with price hikes helped boost revenue, analysts said.

PEER COMPARISON

* The mean of analysts' ratings standardised to a scale of Strong Buy, Buy, Hold, Sell, and Strong Sell

** The ratio of the stock's last close to analysts' mean price target; a ratio above 1 means the stock is trading above the PT

OCTOBER-DECEMBER STOCK PERFORMANCE

-- All data from LSEG

-- $1 = 87.5575 Indian rupees

(Reporting by Meenakshi Maidas in Bengaluru; Editing by Subhranshu Sahu)

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Feb 3 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• JAN TOTAL SALES 3,81,040 UNITS

Source text: ID:nBSE94pMSj

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Jan 29 (Reuters) - Shares of India's Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS rose more than 4% in early trade on Wednesday, as analysts flagged a healthy near-term domestic demand and export outlook for the two-wheeler maker.

The shares were leading gains in the benchmark Nifty 50 index .NSEI, which was up marginally, and were among the top gainers in the auto index .NIFTYAUTO, which rose 0.6%.

The 'Pulsar' motorcycle manufacturer's profit rose 3.3% to 21.09 billion rupees (around $244 million) for the October-December quarter, missing analysts' estimates.

Bajaj Auto also posted its slowest profit growth in nearly two years but the company forecast a 20% growth in exports in the next few months, led by demand from Latin America and Southeast Asia.

"We remain positive on (Bajaj's) growth outlook for both domestic and export two-wheelers," analysts at Jefferies said in a note.

Bajaj Auto expects its margins to sustain, if not expand, as its EV business, particularly the 'Chetak' electric scooter stable, has begun to turn a profit.

Two-wheeler exports contribute more than a third to Bajaj Auto's overall sales.

Its shares were last 4.2% higher at 8,740 rupees. They have fallen 0.7% so far this month compared with a 1.1% drop in the auto index.

Meanwhile, shares of rival two-wheeler maker TVS Motor Company TVSM.NS jumped over 7%, adding to 5% gains on Tuesday after the company posted upbeat margins despite missing analysts' profit estimates.

(Reporting by Manvi Pant and Sethurman NR in Bengaluru; Editing by Mrigank Dhaniwala)

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Jan 28 (Reuters) - India's Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS reported a smaller-than-expected rise in third-quarter profit on Tuesday, hurt by lower domestic sales of its motorcycles and three-wheelers, while higher sales of its margin-diluting electric scooters also weighed.

The 'Pulsar' motorcycle manufacturer reported a profit of 21.09 billion rupees (around $244 million) for the October-December quarter, missing analysts' expectations of 21.63 billion rupees, according to data compiled by LSEG.

($1 = 86.5320 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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Jan 21 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - GETS TAX ORDER FOR 23.2 MILLION RUPEES

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Jan 14 (Reuters) -

• INDIA'S DEC TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 3,14,934 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S DEC 2-WHEELER SALES 11,05,565 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S DEC 3-WHEELER SALES 52,733 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S JAN-DEC TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 42,74,793 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S JAN-DEC 2-WHEELER SALES 1,95,43,093 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S JAN-DEC 3-WHEELER SALES 7,28,670 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

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Jan 10 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• ORDER ISSUED BY ASSISTANT COMMISSIONER, CGST & CENTRAL EXCISE

• ORDER DEMANDS TAX OF 1.2 MILLION RUPEES

Source text: ID:nBSE6Dv0CS

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** Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS rises 1.5%; among top pct gainers on Nifty 50 .NSEI, which is down 0.3%

** Stock rises for first session in five, but shed 0.7% in 2025 so far

** CLSA upgrades to "outperform" from "underperform" citing recent correction, co's improving electric two-wheeler franchise

** Brokerage note says co's market share in electric two-wheelers rose to 25% in December 2024 on cheaper Chetak model

** Maintains TP at 9,493 rupees vs stock's avg TP od 10,507.94 rupees - LSEG

** Says Latam, Asean markets helping co's exports recovery; warns domestic competition from TVS Motor TVSM.NS, Hero MotoCorp HROM.NS and Honda 7267.T will persist

** Stock hit record high of 12,774 rupees in September; currently trading at 8,734 rupees

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru)

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Updates shares in paragraph 10, adds details from letter in paragraph 5, background in paragraph 7-9

Jan 8 (Reuters) - India's markets regulator has warned Ola Electric OLAE.NS against sharing company-related information on social media before disclosing it to investors, adding to a slew of problems for the electric two-wheeler maker.

The letter from the Securities and Exchange Board of India (SEBI), disclosed by Ola Electric late on Tuesday, said that the company had failed provide "equal and timely access" to its investors of information about a planned store expansion.

Last month, Ola Electric's founder, Bhavish Aggarwal, shared news about new store openings in a post on social media platform X and to investors about four hours later through the stock exchanges.

Publicly-listed companies are required to disclose any information first to investors through exchange filings and not more than 12 hours after the event takes place.

"The above violations have been viewed very seriously. You are hereby warned," SEBI said in its letter.

Ola Electric, which went public in August last year, opened 3,200 new stores and service centres last month to expand its reach and address rising complaints on its service standards.

The letter from SEBI is the latest such regulatory scrutiny on the company following a government agency's investigation into its service standards.

The issues have cast a shadow on Ola's stellar listing, which saw its shares double in value in less than a week.

It has also lost market share to rivals TVS Motor TVSM.NS and Bajaj Auto's BAJA.NS 'Chetak' e-scooters in recent months.

Its shares are currently down about 1.8% at 77.74 rupees, nearly 50% below their all-time high hit in August last year. They had fallen as much as 5% earlier in the day.

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; Editing by Sonia Cheema)

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** Shares of Bajaj Auto Ltd BAJA.NS drop as much as 2.8% to 8,551 rupees, their lowest since March 2024

** Automaker's total sales fell 1% in December Y-o-Y, co said before market open

** BAJA last down 1.8%, biggest pct loser on blue-chip Nifty 50 .NSEI index

** Overall sales decline led by 19% fall in domestic two-wheeler sales

** Analysts tracking BAJA rate it "hold" on avg, same as peers Eicher Motors EICH.NS and TVS Motor TVSM.NS - data compiled by LSEG

** Stock rose 29.4% in 2024, marking a third consecutive year of gains

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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By Aditi Shah and Neha Arora

NEW DELHI, Dec 17 (Reuters) - South Korea's LG Energy Solution is in talks with India's JSW Energy to manufacture batteries for electric vehicles and renewable energy storage in a joint venture that would need an investment of over $1.5 billion, two sources told Reuters.

The two companies have signed an initial agreement to form an equal partnership in which LGES 373220.KS will contribute the technology and equipment for making batteries and JSW JSWE.NS will invest money, said one of the sources.

The discussions include setting up a plant in India with a total capacity of 10 gigawatt hours of which JSW is likely to use about 70% for energy storage and electric vehicles and LGES will take the remainder, both sources said.

"LGES wanted a partner in India and JSW is interested because it is coming up with its own brand of EVs starting with buses and trucks, and later on cars," said the second person.

The agreement is non-binding and both companies expect to finalise the talks over coming months, said the two sources who have direct knowledge of the discussions but declined to be identified as the talks are still private.

"We are exploring various potential business options and monitoring market situation closely," LGES said in a statement, adding that it does not have any specific plans for India.

JSW Energy declined to comment.

Reuters reported last year that LGES and JSW were in early talks to build batteries together in India.

For LGES, which supplies Tesla TSLA.O, General Motors GM.N and Hyundai 005380.KS, the joint venture will establish its manufacturing presence in India where it is the top battery supplier to e-scooter makers like Ola Electric OLAE.NS and home-grown rival TVS Motor TVSM.NS.

It also gives LGES an opportunity to lower its risk of manufacturing in a country where the EV market is still in its infancy. Slowing EV demand elsewhere in the world has already forced it to reduce capital expenditure next year.

For JSW, whose billionaire chairman Sajjan Jindal has publicly aired his desire to build EVs, this will be an opportunity to secure supplies locally for its energy business while bringing down the cost of its EVs.

The Indian steel-to-energy group last year formed a joint venture with China's SAIC Motor 600104.SS giving it a 35% stake in the Chinese carmaker's India unit, MG Motor, which it is now helping grow.

"JSW has proposed a 25-year agreement to LGES," said the second person, adding that the Indian company continues to engage with other battery players as well.

The companies would like the plant to be operational before the end of 2026 and expect to make a final decision in about 3-4 months, the first person said.

If the venture goes ahead it will be a win for India's Prime Minister Narendra Modi's government that is offering companies billions of dollars in incentives to boost local manufacturing of clean cars.

Domestic carmakers Tata Motor TAMO.NS and rival MG Motor dominate India's electric car sales, while home-grown brands like Ola, TVS and Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS lead e-scooter sales.

(Reporting by Aditi Shah and Neha Arora in New Delhi, additional reporting by Hyun Joo Jin in Seoul
Editing by Christina Fincher)

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Dec 13 (Reuters) - Ashok Leyland Ltd ASOK.NS:

• INDIA'S NOV TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 3,47,522 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S NOV 2-WHEELER SALES 16,04,749 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S NOV 3-WHEELER SALES 59,350 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

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Dec 5 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - CLARIFIES ON BROKERAGE REPORT ABOUT SALES VOLUMES AND PRICE CUTS

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - DISPATCH NUMBERS FOR FREEDOM 125 INCORRECTLY STATED AS 80K

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - BILLED 67K UNITS OF FREEDOM 125 TO DEALERS, AS OF NOV 30

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - PULSAR MODELS PRICED UP AND DOWN IN LAST COUPLE OF MONTHS

Source text: ID:nBSE2WNv60

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Dec 2 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO - NOV TOTAL SALES 4,21,640 UNITS

Source text: ID:nBSE1gr1Jb

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Nov 20 (Reuters) - Bajaj Auto Limited BAJA.NS:

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - RBI PASSES COMPOUNDING ORDER AGAINST CO

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - MATTER PERTAINS TO INADVERTENT ODI-FDI STRUCTURE CREATED IN 2012

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - ORDER COMPOUNDS CONTRAVENTION WITH PAYMENT OF 22 MILLION RUPEES

• BAJAJ AUTO LIMITED - ORDER AMOUNT NOT MATERIAL, NO IMPACT ON OPERATIONS

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Nov 15 (Reuters) - INDIA AUTO DEALERS' BODY FADA:

• NEARLY HIT OUR FORECASTED TARGET OF 4.3 MILLION VEHICLES DURING 42 DAYS FESTIVE PERIOD

• AUTO INDUSTRY YET TO FULLY BENEFIT FROM GOVERNMENT PUSH IN INFRASTRUCTURE SPENDING

• EXPECTS GOVERNMENT PUSH IN INFRASTRUCTURE SPENDING TO BOLSTER COMMERCIAL VEHICLE SALES

• COULD HAVE MET 4.5 MLN UNITS TARGET IF NOT FOR UNSEASONAL HEAVY RAINS IN SOUTH INDIA

• ANTICIPATES CAR STOCK LEVELS WILL REDUCE FURTHER FROM OCTOBER LEVELS

• URGES OEMS TO FOCUS ON LIQUIDATING 2024 STOCK AHEAD OF YEAR END

• LOOKING AHEAD, TRACTORS TO PERFORM BETTER, SUPPORTED BY GOOD RAINFALL, RISE IN MSP OF CROPS

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Adds details on strategy, updates share levels and background

By Nandan Mandayam and Indranil Sarkar

Nov 14 (Reuters) - India's Eicher Motors EICH.NS was on course for its best day since mid-2020, after the Royal Enfield motorcycle maker posted a quarterly profit beat, which analysts said indicated that the "toughest phase" of competition was over.

Eicher's stock rose more than 8.3% and was the top gainer on the Nifty auto index .NIFTYAUTO, which was up about 1%.

Jefferies said that the "toughest phase of the competition is behind" for Royal Enfield. Emkay, which also said competition was "largely behind", upgraded the stock three notches to "buy" from "sell".

Demand for its motorcycles has sustained even after the October-November festive season due to successful launches of some of new premium models, Royal Enfield CEO B Govindarajan told analysts on Wednesday.

The company, which gets most of its earnings from Royal Enfield, came under pressure last year after two-wheeler makers Hero MotoCorp HROM.NS and Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS launched premium Harley Davidson and Triumph models, directly challenging some of Royal Enfield's top sellers.

Govindarajan added that rural demand was rising and continued to outpace urban sales growth. Rural sales account for a third of Royal Enfield's sales and over half of the country's two-wheeler industry.

The positive commentary sent Hero's shares 1.5% higher. The company, which sells a major chunk of its motorcycles in rural India, is often viewed by investors as a gauge for rural sales.

It is due to report results later in the day.

Shares of other two-wheeler makers also traded marginally higher, with TVS Motor Company TVSM.NS rising 0.6% and Bajaj Auto up 0.1%.

Additionally, analysts raised Royal Enfield's volume growth estimates after Govindarajan said the company was focusing on volumes over margins and looking at "all the levers which are available for getting the growth."

Nomura termed Royal Enfield's focus on volume growth "a better trade-off" while upgrading the stock to "neutral" from "sell". It raised its fiscal 2025 volume growth target to 8.3% from 5%, while Ambit raised its estimate to 5.4% from 3.9%.

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam and Indranil Sarkar in Bengaluru; Editing by Janane Venkatraman)

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Nov 13 (Reuters) - Ashok Leyland Ltd ASOK.NS:

• INDIA'S OCT TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 393,238 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S OCT 2-WHEELER SALES 2,164,276 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S OCT 3-WHEELER SALES 76,770 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

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** Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS slips 4.3%; biggest pct loser on Nifty 50 .NSEI index and among auto stocks .NIFTYAUTO

** Automaker reports drop in monthly domestic two- and three-wheeler sales to dealers

** Co's October sales of domestic two-wheelers fell 8% y/y; three-wheeler sales dropped 6%

** Peers TVS Motor TVSM.NS, Hero MotoCorp HROM.NS and Royal Enfield motorcycle-maker Eicher Motors EICH.NS log growth in monthly domestic two-wheeler sales between 17% and 26%

** BAJA rated "hold" on avg, same as TVSM and EICH, while HROM rated "buy" - LSEG

** Stock slid 20% in October, its worst month since March 2020, after co warned of weak festive sales

** YTD, BAJA still leads pack with ~39% rise, outperforming NIFTYAUTO's 27% growth

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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** Shares of Bajaj Auto Ltd BAJA.NS down 1.2%

** 'Pulsar' motorcycle maker on track to log weekly decline of 15.5%, its worst week since early November 2008

** Sharp weekly slide on the back of ~13% daily drop on Thursday following weak festive season outlook for domestic motorcycle sales

** Stock ended higher only once this week

** Fourteen analysts rate BAJA "sell" or lower, the most in at least 2 years; number of analysts rating it "buy" or higher is least - data compiled by LSEG

** Avg rating of 40 analysts tracking BAJA is "hold", same as TVS Motor TVSM.NS - LSEG

** Auto stocks .NIFTYAUTO lose 4.7% this week; benchmark Nifty 50 .NSEI down 0.9%

** BAJA trims YTD gains to 48% but remains top-performing two-wheeler stock this year

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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Updates with closing levels

By Hritam Mukherjee

Oct 17 (Reuters) - Indian shares fell for the third straight session on Thursday as motorcycle maker Bajaj Auto's warning of weak festive period sales rippled through the markets, adding to the pressure of high stock valuations and the exodus of foreign funds.

The Nifty 50 index .NSEI dropped 0.9% at 24,749.85 points as of 3:30 p.m. IST, while the S&P BSE Sensex .BSESN fell 0.6% to 81,006.61.

Twelve out of the 13 major indexes ended lower.

Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS slumped nearly 13% in its worst day since March 2020, after it said it expects festive season sales growth of just 3%-5%, well below expectations of at least 8%.

The warning from Bajaj dragged down rivals and also weighed on tyre and battery makers.

Bigger peers Hero MotoCorp HROM.NS and TVS Motor TVSM.NS fell 3.4% each, while CEAT CEAT.NS and Apollo Tyres APLO.NS dipped 2% and 3%, respectively. Exide Industries EXID.NS shed 3% and Amara Raja Energy and Mobility AMAR.NS dropped 2%.

Bajaj's forecast added to worries that inflation-hit buyers are limiting expensive purchases this festive season and has fuelled concerns for other sectors like property where ticket sizes are even bigger, said Rupesh Sankhe, a research analyst at Elara Capital.

Property firms .NIFTYREAL shed 3.8% and was the top sectoral loser by percentage, followed by a 3.5% drop in autos .NIFTYAUTO.

Consumer firms .NIFTYFMCG declined 1.6%.

Nestle India NEST.NS fell 3.4% after its quarterly profit slid on weak demand and higher costs.

Lacklustre large-cap earnings and diversion of foreign funds to China after announcements of economic stimulus have also hit overall sentiment.

Foreign outflows totalled $8.1 billion so far in October, the highest since March 2020.

The more domestically-focussed small- .NIFSMCP100 and mid-caps .NIFMDCP100 awere down 1.2% and 1.7%, respectively.

(Reporting by Hritam Mukherjee in Bengaluru; Editing by Rashmi Aich, Savio D'Souza and Sonia Cheema)

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** Shares of Bajaj Auto Ltd BAJA.NS trade 0.5% lower at 11,460 rupees ahead of Q2 results

** Analysts on avg see BAJA's profit growing 19.4% to 21.92 billion rupees ($261 million), per LSEG data; rev to rise ~25%

** BAJA first Indian two-wheeler maker to report Q2 results

** 'Pulsar' motorcycle manufacturer benefited from strong domestic sales, particularly of its premium motorcycles, in July-Sept quarter, analysts say

** BAJA's overall volumes, which include those of more profitable three-wheelers, grew 16% in Q2

** Analysts rate BAJA "hold" on avg, same as Royal Enfield maker Eicher EICH.NS and TVS Motor TVSM.NS; Hero MotoCorp HROM.NS only "buy"-rated peer - LSEG data

** Stock leads pack with ~68% YTD gain, outperforming auto stocks' .NIFTYAUTO ~40% rise this year

($1 = 84.0510 Indian rupees)

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru)

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Oct 7 (Reuters) - Ashok Leyland Ltd ASOK.NS:

• INDIA'S AUTO DEALER'S BODY: SEPT OVERALL SALES WITNESSED SIGNIFICANT DECLINE OF -9.26% YOY

• INDIA'S FADA: PASSENGER VEHICLE DEALERS FACING ALL TIME HIGH INVENTORY LEVELS OF 80-85 DAYS

• INDIA'S FADA: PASSENGER VEHICLE DEALERS UNDER FINANCIAL PRESSURE, INCREASED CASH FLOW CHALLENGES

• INDIA'S FADA: URGE RBI TO ISSUE STRICTER RULES ON CHANNEL FUNDING TO MITIGATE DEALERS FINANCIAL RISK

• INDIA'S FADA - MIXED PERFORMANCE OBSERVED ACROSS SEGMENTS IN SEPT

• INDIA'S FADA - MONSOON DISRUPTED RETAIL PERFORMANCE IN REGIONS, NEGATIVELY IMPACTING DEMAND

• INDIA'S FADA - FESTIVE SEASON BOOST WITH BOTH NAVRATRI, DIWALI FALLING IN SAME MONTH,EXPECTED TO UPLIFT SALES

• INDIA'S FADA - FAVOURABLE AGRI CONDITIONS LIKELY TO SPUR RURAL DEMAND FOR 2W, PV, TRAC SEGMENTS
  

Source text for Eikon: [ID:]

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By Nandan Mandayam

Oct 1 (Reuters) - India's top electric scooter maker Ola Electric OLAE.NS logged its lowest monthly sales this year in September, government data showed, as the SoftBank-backed firm sees its dominance eroded by smaller competitors and servicing network challenges.

Ola Electric, which made its stock market debut about two months ago, sold 23,965 vehicles in September, recording a month-on-month decline for the second consecutive month.

Its falling month-on-month sales has seen its market share decline for five straight months to 27% in September, from over 50% in April, the data showed.

In that period, Ola's closest rivals TVS Motor TVSM.NS and Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS have narrowed the gap, reporting market share gains for five and three straight months, respectively.

Ola Electric did not respond to a Reuters email seeking comment on the market share loss and its servicing network.

Slowing sales at Ola, whose prices have often undercut the market, pose further challenges to the company's financial results. It is yet to turn a profit.

Analysts attribute Ola's narrowing lead to rivals launching newer models priced closer to those of Ola, as well as its own strained service network that is seeing scooters pile up.

A ramp-up in dealership networks has also been key for Bajaj and TVS in challenging Ola, according to Jay Kale of Elara Capital.

Over the last year, Bajaj has boosted the dealership count for its Chetak e-scooters from around 100 to over 500, as of June. Ola's dealership count has only risen from 750 to 800.

Last month, a 26-year-old man was arrested for allegedly setting fire to an Ola showroom in the southern Karnataka state over unsatisfactory servicing of a recently purchased e-scooter.

HSBC analysts said in a note last month that Ola's service would be one of the "key drivers" for maintaining its market share.

(Reporting by Nandan Mandayam in Bengaluru; Editing by Mark Potter)

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** Bajaj Auto BAJA.NS climbs as much as 2.3% to 12,040.25 rupees, last up 1.5%

** HSBC retains "buy" on BAJA, hikes TP from 11,000 rupees to Street-high of 14,000 rupees, a ~19% premium to last close

** Says sustained traction for CNG vehicles, e-two wheelers and Africa exports driving preference for BAJA over rival TVS Motor TVSM.NS

** TVSM trading almost flat

** Earnings resilience and product triggers score better for BAJA vs peers - HSBC

** Sees better growth and margin resilience for BAJA vs TVSM

** Says BAJA's entry into e-rickshaws segment will note a significant upside

** Analysts' avg rating on BAJA, TVSM "hold" - LSEG

** BAJA gains ~76% YTD vs TVSM's 37% rise

(Reporting by Manvi Pant in Bengaluru)

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Sept 13 (Reuters) - Ashok Leyland Ltd ASOK.NS:

• INDIA'S AUGUST TOTAL DOMESTIC PASSENGER VEHICLE SALES 3,52,921 UNITS- INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S AUGUST 2-WHEELER SALES 17,11,662 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA'S AUGUST 3-WHEELER SALES 69,962 UNITS - INDUSTRY BODY

• INDIA AUTO INDUSTRY BODY: AS COUNTRY ENTERS FESTIVE SEASON, DEMAND FOR VEHICLES EXPECTED TO GROW

Source text for Eikon: [ID:]

Further company coverage: ASOK.NS

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