Morgan Stanley has reiterated its ‘Overweight’ stance on Coal India (CIL) with a target price of ₹525, noting that March 2025 offtake remained flat YoY despite a recovery in power demand since February.
The brokerage highlighted that inventories at power plants continue to remain elevated, with average stockpiles at more than 19 days of consumption. This has kept demand for fresh coal supplies under pressure, impacting CIL’s volume performance.
While power demand is expected to stay healthy in the coming months, Morgan Stanley warns that offtake in Q1FY26 may remain subdued. Weak offtake, combined with soft global coal prices, could weigh on CIL’s near-term earnings outlook unless there is a sharper-than-expected pickup in demand. However, Morgan Stanley remains constructive on CIL’s long-term earnings potential and dividend yield.
