'Anti-Muhurat' Watchlist: 3 Ignored Stocks with Rebound Potential 

Hello everyone, Rahul Shah here, trying to make investing accessible and profitable for the average investor.

It's that time of year again. Your feed is flooded with Diwali stock picks. Every expert has a list. And you know what? Most of those lists are the same. They're all talking about the same popular blue-chip stocks and the hot sectors. But what if the traditional approach is actually the risky one?

What if focusing only on what everyone else is discussing leads to missed opportunities?

In this video, we're taking a different path. We are exploring the "Anti-Muhurat" Watchlist.

We won't be analyzing the crowded, expensive stocks. Instead, we will turn our attention to the corners of the market that many are ignoring. We're examining the unloved, the overlooked, and the potentially undervalued.

Our goal is to provide you with a fresh perspective for your own research. So, tet's begin.

Our first stock on the list is Praj Industries. Praj Industries' share price has fallen more than 50% in the last year, primarily due to a sharp drop in its financial performance and slowdown in the ethanol sector it heavily relies on.

Reasons for the Fall

• Weak Earnings: The company reported a significant decline, over 90% in net profit for a recent quarter (Q1 FY26), which disappointed the market.
• Ethanol Market Slowdown: The main reason for the profit decline is a cautious approach in the domestic ethanol market. India achieved its 20% ethanol blending target ahead of schedule, leading to a temporary slowdown in new orders for ethanol plant equipment as the market waits for new government blending mandates.
• Execution Delays: Project completion has been delayed due to longer project execution cycles and liquidity challenges faced by domestic customers.
• International Uncertainty: Geopolitical issues and uncertainty regarding US tariff policies have stalled some international capital expenditure decisions, which affects Praj's export-oriented business.

The Way Forward

Despite the short-term headwinds, many analysts remain positive about Praj's long-term growth potential. The recovery hinges on:

• New Growth Avenues: The company is diversifying into new, high-growth areas like Sustainable Aviation Fuel (SAF), Compressed Biogas (CBG), bio-bitumen, and green hydrogen.
• Strong Order Book: Praj still holds a strong order backlog (around ?4,450 crore), which provides revenue visibility once project execution speeds up.
• Policy Push: Further government push on higher ethanol blending targets (like a roadmap for 25% blending) or clarity on US tax credits for low-carbon fuels could revive order inflow.

When it comes to valuations, the stock currently trades at a PE multiple of around 45x, which is still higher than its 10-year median of around 38x.

However, if it goes back to earning an EPS of Rs 12 per share which it had earned in FY23, FY24 and FY25, then the stock trades at a PE of 28x, much lower than its 10-year median PE.

Investors can keep this stock on their watchlist and watch the earnings trend closely.

Another contrarian pick is a stock that is down 45% in the last one year. It is a bank which answers to the name of Indusind Bank Ltd.

The stock trades below its current book value whereas its long-term average price to book value is close to 2x.

The steep decline in IndusInd Bank's share price over the last year is primarily due to governance and accounting concerns that shook investor confidence.

Here are the major reasons why the stock price fell so much.

1. Accounting Discrepancy: The biggest blow came from the bank disclosing a significant accounting mismatch in its complex financial products (derivatives portfolio). This forced the bank to take a large financial hit and raised serious questions about the quality of its internal checks and transparency.
2. Leadership Uncertainty: The Reserve Bank of India (RBI) granted the bank's CEO a shorter-than-expected term extension, which further fuelled market worries about stable leadership and potential underlying issues.
3. Governance Worries: These incidents combined led investors to doubt the bank's corporate governance standards and risk management practices, prompting a large-scale sell-off.

So, what is the way forward?

Well, the bank's recovery hinges on restoring trust. This requires:

1. Transparency: Providing absolute clarity on the accounting issue and ensuring a full, independent audit.
2. Stronger Controls: Demonstrating to the RBI and investors that its internal governance and risk management are significantly strengthened.
3. Succession Planning: Finalizing a clear and strong plan for the next CEO to ensure stable future leadership.

While the fundamentals of its core lending business remain decent, the stock's future performance is heavily tied to resolving these non-financial, governance-related issues.

Watch out for positive news on any of these fronts.

The third stock you should keep on your anti-muhurat watchlist is Natco Pharma Ltd.

This stock is also down more than 40% in the last one year.

What are the reasons behind this Decline?

• Weak Quarterly Results: A major trigger was the disappointing Q3 FY25 earnings, where the company reported a massive sequential decline in revenue and profit. This lack of sales in Q3 shocked the market and led to a steep sell-off.
• Future Revenue Uncertainty: The stock is facing serious concern over the patent expiry for gRevlimid in January 2026. Since gRevlimid has been a blockbuster product, its eventual loss of exclusivity and the resulting flood of competition are expected to cause a significant decline in future revenues and profits starting from FY27.

So, what is the Way Forward?

Natco's future largely depends on its ability to successfully launch new high-value generic products to replace the revenue from gRevlimid. Key actions and opportunities include:

• New Product Pipeline: Successfully launching other complex generic drugs, such as generic Ozempic (a diabetes/weight loss drug), which it is partnered on, will be crucial.
• Strategic Acquisitions: The company is making strategic moves, such as its planned acquisition of a significant stake in South Africa's Adcock Ingram, which aims to provide a strong new market for expansion and diversification in the African continent.
• Legal Wins and Launches: Recent court victories, such as the one allowing the launch of the generic drug Risdiplam for Spinal Muscular Atrophy in India, will also contribute, though their impact is smaller than the US market products.

In conclusion, while the gRevlimid impact looms large, investors should keep an eye out for other launches by the company.

So, these were the stocks for your 'Anti Muhurat' watchlist. These are the companies where while further downside appears limited, they can really surprise you on the upside should things start going in their favour.

Well, we are not done yet. We have a surprise for you. We are giving you two more stocks as bonus. These are not anti muhurat stocks but are companies that have done relatively well over the last one year and could end up doing well over the next 1-2 years.

The first one is Motilal Oswal Financial Services Ltd and the second is Gillette India Ltd. while the first one is riding the tailwinds of the financialisaton of domestic savings, the second one is a play on the premiumisation of the Indian economy where higher disposable incomes would lead to people buying more expensive products.

Watch out for these two stocks as well.

So, those were the 3 plus 2 names from our side. Hope you liked our video. Please share, like and subscribe if you did so.

Here's wishing all of you a safe and a prosperous Diwali and a Happy New Year.

I will see you again next time. Good bye and Happy Investing.