Patel Engg leads rally in construction stocks

With an overflowing order book running up to Rs 12,500 crore, seven construction companies have outperformed the benchmark indices in the last one year with average returns of over 300 per cent.

As almost 40 per cent of the orders were received in March 2005, almost one-third of the gains in the stock prices came in March alone.

The Patel Engineering scrip topped the list of gainers, with a price appreciation of 855 per cent in one year.

The Madhucon Projects scrip followed with one-year gains of 658 per cent. Simplex Concrete Piles (457 per cent), HCC (341 per cent), Nagarjuna Construction (315 per cent), Gammon India (163 per cent) and IVRCL (122 per cent) were the major gainers among construction sector stocks.

The Patel Engineering scrip shot up from Rs 22.99 (Re 1 paid-up) a year ago to Rs 219.70 on April 1, 2005.

However, more than half of the year's gain came in March after the company informed the Bombay Stock Exchange (BSE) on March 9 and March 30 that it has received two new contracts worth Rs 1,270 crore. The sharehas soared from around Rs 130 on March 1 to Rs over 219 on April 1.

The Madhucon Projects scrip rose to Rs 810.55 on April 1, 2005, from Rs 107 a year ago. The company received four orders worth Rs 1,825 crore in March and its scrip shot up by 27.1 per cent from Rs 637.85 on March 1.

Simplex Concrete Piles bagged new orders worth Rs 1,483 crore. Nagarjuna Constructions secured orders worth Rs 3,219 crore last year. The stock has gained 30.5 per cent in March alone on the back of three new orders worth Rs 993 crore.

The IVRCL Infrastructures scrip rose 122 per cent following orders of Rs 2,870 crore received in the past one year.

HCC rose 341 per cent on the back of new orders worth Rs 565 crore.