Maruti Suzuki’s e-Vitara marks its high-stakes EV debut with strong export ambitions, lifting its stock even as analysts caution over pricing and fierce competition.
IMAGE: The Maruti Suzuki e-Vitara. Photograph: Kind courtesy, Maruti Suzuki
Maruti Suzuki India’s first all-electric sports utility vehicle (SUV), the e-Vitara, has drawn a positive response from analysts.
While the launch marks the company’s big-bang entry into the electric-vehicle (EV) segment, concerns around pricing and stiff competition are keeping expectations in check, they said.
Last week, the firm flagged off the production of the e-Vitara at its Gujarat plant.
The company’s stock on the BSE hit a record high of ₹14,940.6 on August 28, and has risen 2.2 per cent since the launch on August 26. By comparison, the BSE Sensex has slipped 2.2 per cent during the period.
EV debut
The SUV, which will also be India’s most mass-produced and exported EV, will initially target global markets including Germany, the Netherlands, Sweden, Denmark, Norway, and Austria.
The model has been introduced in the United Kingdom, with a wider European rollout planned in the coming months.
Brokerages say the car will add momentum to the company’s exports. Nomura expects volumes at 415,000 units in FY26 (up 25 per cent year-on-year) and 449,000 units in FY27 (up 8 per cent year-on-year).
‘Europe will be the key focus area where Maruti will compete with Chinese EV makers such as BYD, and South Korean rivals Hyundai and Kia. Intense competition makes reviews and consumer reception in these markets a key monitorable,’ Nomura said in a note.
The brokerage has a ‘neutral’ rating on the stock with a target price of ₹13,113, factoring in muted domestic demand of around 3,000 units per month.
Nuvama Institutional Equities, however, remains more upbeat with a “buy” rating and a target price of ₹14,300.
‘The investment of ₹2,200 crore towards productionising expenses is aimed at building over 70,000 units in the first year. Exports will be sold on a cost-plus basis, ensuring Ebit-level profitability even without PLI (production-linked incentive) benefits,’ analysts at Nuvama noted.
Production and investment
The plant where the e-Vitara is manufactured has a capacity of 750,000 units across three lines.
A fourth line, with an additional 250,000-unit capacity, is expected to be operational in FY27 and will be fungible across the internal combustion engine, electric-vehicle, and hybrid powertrains.
Alongside, the carmaker started operations at a battery component plant at the same site, in partnership with Suzuki, Toshiba, and Denso.
The facility, with 80 per cent localisation, will manufacture hybrid battery electrodes to strengthen the EV supply chain in India.
Its annual capacity of 18 million cells — sufficient for 350,000 hybrids — is being expanded to 30 million cells.
Maruti has invested ₹4,270 crore in the new battery component plant and hybrid capacity expansion.
On a broader scale, analysts say Maruti’s ongoing capacity expansion (the Kharkhoda plant’s commissioning in Q4FY25 and future Gujarat expansion) reinforces its readiness to scale up capacity from 2.4 million to four million units by FY31.
‘Importantly, Maruti’s pragmatic approach to decarbonisation — spanning CNG, hybrids, and EVs — rather than EV-only bets, aligns better with India’s evolving customer base and regulatory landscape. This diversification across technologies, geographies, and customer segments de-risks growth and earnings visibility over the medium term,’ said ICICI Direct Research.
It has upgraded the stock to “buy” with a revised target price of ₹16,550, valuing it at 28 times its price-earning multiple in FY27E.
Feature Presentation: Rajesh Alva/Rediff
