Mahindra shares jump 3% on launch of Thar Roxx in India

Shares of Mahindra and Mahindra (M&M) rose over 3% in early trade on Friday, a day after the automobile major launched Thar Roxx, a 5 seater sport utility vehicle (SUV) in India. The auto heavyweight has risen nearly 8% in six out of the last seven sessions.

Continuing its gaining streak for the third straight session, Mahindra shares opened higher at ₹2,799.95, up 1.96% against the previous closing price of ₹2,745.90 on the BSE. In the first two hours of trade so far, the auto stock gained as much as 3.3% to ₹2,837.90, while the market capitalisation climbed to ₹3.5 lakh crore. The counter witnessed strong volume as 1.3 lakh shares changed hands over the counter as compared to 0.94 lakh stocks.

Shares of M&M, the flagship company of Mahindra Group, touched a 52-week high of ₹3,013.95 on June 18, 2024, and a 52-week low of ₹1,450.55 on November 1, 2023. The stock has given 78% returns in the last one year; 52% in the past six months; and 64% in the calendar year 2024. In the last one month, the counter saw some consolidation as the stock rose over 1% as investors booked profit at higher levels.

In an exchange filing on August 15, Mahindra Group chairman Anand Mahindra-led company unveiled the launch of Thar ROXX with prices starting at ₹12.99 lakh (introductory ex-showroom). Bookings for the Thar ROXX will open online and at Mahindra dealerships from October 3, 2024, Test Drives will start from September 14, 2024, and deliveries will commence this Dussehra, as per the exchange filing.

Designed at the Mahindra India Design Studio (MIDS) in Mumbai, engineered at the Mahindra Research Valley (MRV) near Chennai, and developed and tested at the Mahindra SUV Proving Track (MSPT), the Thar ROXX is built at Mahindra's facility in Nashik, the release notes.

Built on Mahindra’s new platform, the Thar ROXX comes with six airbags, a tyre pressure monitoring system (TPMS), electronic stability control (ESC). and an ADAS suite. It has dynamic engine options of the G20 TGDI mStallion and D22 mHawk engines, delivering torque of 380 Nm and 370 Nm, respectively.

Earlier in April this year, M&M launched its compact SUV - XUV 3XO, which competes with the likes of Maruti Suzuki Brezza, Hyundai Venue, and Tata Nexon. The country’s leading SUV manufacturer has set the starting price of XUV 3XO at ₹7.49 lakh, for which bookings will open online and simultaneously at Mahindra dealerships from May 15, 2024. The deliveries of the XUV 3XO commenced on May 26, 2024.

Last month, M&M reported overall auto sales for July 2024 at 66,444 vehicles, including exports. In the utility vehicles segment, Mahindra sold 41,623 vehicles in the domestic market, a growth of 15% and overall, 42,012 vehicles, including exports. The domestic sales for commercial vehicles stood at 19,713.

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