Shares of Steel Authority of India (SAIL) continued their winning momentum for the second straight session on Wednesday, February 25, gaining another 4.4% to ₹167.20 apiece. The stock was last seen around these levels in June 2024.
Today’s rally was triggered by a positive outlook from domestic brokerage firm Emkay Global, which lifted its target price on the stock to ₹200 apiece from an earlier ₹175, citing attractive valuations, near-term operational levers, and supportive pricing trends, CNBC TV-18 reported. Mint could not independently verify the report.
The brokerage expects the company’s margins to stabilise, given ongoing inventory liquidation, an improving product mix, and gains from coal blending efficiencies. On the bottom line, it expects firmer domestic steel prices to support the company’s profitability in the near term.
Despite expected rising coking coal costs, the brokerage sees a sharp earnings recovery, as it believes better realisations and inventory unwind may partly offset an 18% quarter-on-quarter increase in coking coal costs. It also believes stronger cash flow generation will accelerate deleveraging in FY26.
Thus, it projects EBITDA per tonne to rise to ₹7,000–7,500 over the next two quarters, compared with ₹4,500 per tonne in Q3, as per the report.
Meanwhile, earlier this month, Motilal Oswal also upgraded the stock to ‘Buy’ with a target price of ₹175 apiece, as it was impressed by the company’s performance in the December quarter.
In addition, the improvement in steel prices, an improved margin outlook, and the recent correction in the stock price also drove the brokerage to upgrade the rating.
The brokerage said that despite muted NSR, SAIL reported decent earnings in 3QFY26, aided by healthy volumes, which it expects to improve further in the ongoing quarter, supported by steel price recovery and better volumes backed by inventory liquidation.
SAIL share price trend
The recent uptick in SAIL’s share price has contributed to a 10% gain in February so far and a 13% rise in 2026. Looking back, the stock picked up momentum in March last year after remaining under prolonged selling pressure between May 2024 and February 2025, during which it lost 36% of its value.
Nevertheless, the SAIL share price has managed to recover the majority of its losses by gaining 67% over the last 12 months, including today. Yet, the stock still has ground to cover, as it is still trading 43% below its record peak of ₹293 apiece, touched in 2007.
Disclaimer: This story is for educational purposes only. The views and recommendations made above are those of individual analysts or broking companies, and not of Mint. We advise investors to check with certified experts before making any investment decisions.
