1. At a Glance
A company named after scooters that doesn’t really make scooters anymore. Instead, it sits on ₹34,500 Cr in assets, mostly Bajaj Holdings & other Bajaj Group cos, generating passive income like a retired landlord. ROE? Less than 1%. But stock price? Up 55% YoY. Welcome to the great Indian holding company puzzle.
2. Introduction with Hook
If passive income were a publicly listed stock, it would be Maharashtra Scooters Ltd (MSL).
Imagine leasing out your garage for ₹1 Cr/month and still pretending you’re “in manufacturing.” That’s MSL. This isn’t your typical business—it’s a Bajaj-controlled cash vault, with nearly 98% of its value tied up in investments, mainly in Bajaj Finserv, Bajaj Auto, and Bajaj Holdings.
- Market Cap: ₹16,669 Cr
- Book Value: ₹27,005/share
- CMP: ₹14,574 — trading at just 0.54x Book Value
- Dividend Yield: 0.96%
- ROE: Anemic 0.61%
A value investor’s wet dream… or a liquidity trap?
3. Business Model (WTF Do They Even Do?)
Technically, Maharashtra Scooters makes dies, jigs, fixtures, and die casting components for the auto industry. In reality?
- It’s an unregistered Core Investment Company (CIC).
- 90%+ of assets are in Bajaj group shares and debt instruments.
- Generates bulk of earnings from dividends, interest, and fair value changes.
MSL is what happens when a manufacturing firm evolves into a glorified Demat account.
4. Financials Overview
| Metric | FY23 | FY24 | FY25 |
|---|---|---|---|
| Revenue (Sales) | ₹216 Cr | ₹223 Cr | ₹184 Cr |
| Other Income | ₹1 Cr | ₹1 Cr | ₹45 Cr |
| Net Profit | ₹195 Cr | ₹199 Cr | ₹214 Cr |
| OPM | 90% | 91% | 94% |
| ROCE | 1% | 1% | 1% |
| ROE | 0.6% | 0.6% | 0.61% |
“Operating Profit” is basically investment returns in disguise. Don’t get fooled.
5. Valuation
| Metric | Value |
|---|---|
| CMP | ₹14,574 |
| Market Cap | ₹16,669 Cr |
| EPS (FY25) | ₹187.6 |
| P/E | 95.2x |
| Book Value | ₹27,005 |
| P/B | 0.54x |
| Dividend Yield | 0.96% |
Fair Value Range (NAV-based) = ₹18,000 – ₹23,000
But market likes liquidity. Without that, value stays locked away.
6. What’s Cooking – News, Triggers, Drama
- Dividend Bonanza: ₹60/share in FY25 (Final + Special).
- Factory Shut Down: Satara unit closed. Machinery sold. Signals further retreat from manufacturing.
- Resignation of CS + Secretarial Changes: Compliance refresh before possible structural shuffle?
- Voluntary Retirement Scheme implemented. Downsizing confirmed.
TL;DR: MSL is shedding its “operations” to fully embrace its destiny as an investment vault.
7. Balance Sheet 💰
| Item | FY25 |
|---|---|
| Equity Capital | ₹11 Cr |
| Reserves | ₹30,851 Cr |
| Borrowings | ₹0 Cr |
| Other Liabilities | ₹3,725 Cr |
| Total Assets | ₹34,588 Cr |
| Investments | ₹34,563 Cr |
| Fixed Assets | ₹0 Cr |
Key Point: 99.9% of total assets are investments. This is the Bajaj Mutual Fund with an ISIN.
8. Cash Flow – Sab Number Game Hai
| Year | CFO | CFI | CFF | Net Cash |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY23 | ₹209 Cr | -₹3 Cr | -₹205 Cr | ₹0 Cr |
| FY24 | ₹206 Cr | -₹12 Cr | -₹194 Cr | ₹0 Cr |
| FY25 | ₹159 Cr | ₹36 Cr | -₹193 Cr | ₹1 Cr |
Cash flows exist primarily to pay dividends. That’s it.
9. Ratios – Sexy or Stressy?
| Ratio | FY25 |
|---|---|
| ROCE | 1% |
| ROE | 0.61% |
| OPM | 94% |
| P/E | 95.2x |
| P/B | 0.54x |
| Dividend Payout % | 75% |
Stressy for metrics. Sexy for long-term holders waiting for that sweet NAV unlocking.
10. P&L Breakdown – Show Me the Money
| Year | Revenue | Other Income | Net Profit | EPS | OPM % | PAT % |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| FY23 | ₹216 Cr | ₹1 Cr | ₹195 Cr | ₹170.88 | 90% | 90.3% |
| FY24 | ₹223 Cr | ₹1 Cr | ₹199 Cr | ₹174.40 | 91% | 89.2% |
| FY25 | ₹184 Cr | ₹45 Cr | ₹214 Cr | ₹187.56 | 94% | 116%* |
*Yes, PAT > Sales thanks to Other Income. Welcome to Holding Company Wonderland.
11. Peer Comparison
| Company | CMP | P/E | ROE | P/B | Div Yield | Mcap (Cr) |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Tata Inv Corp | ₹6,580 | 106x | 1.02% | 1.07x | 0.41% | ₹33,291 |
| JSW Holdings | ₹21,865 | 124x | 0.69% | 0.78x | 0.00% | ₹24,217 |
| Maharashtra Scoot | ₹14,574 | 95x | 0.61% | 0.54x | 0.96% | ₹16,669 |
Holding companies are value traps unless there’s an unlocking event. All three? Gorgeous NAV, miserable returns.
12. Miscellaneous – Shareholding, Promoters
| Category | % Holding (Mar 2025) |
|---|---|
| Promoters | 51.00% |
| FIIs | 4.90% |
| DIIs | 4.52% |
| Public | 39.56% |
| No. of Shareholders | 24,878 |
Stable holding pattern. No major promoter activity, no buybacks. Everyone’s here for the dividend and NAV dream.
13. EduInvesting Verdict™
Maharashtra Scooters is not a scooter company. It’s a Bajaj family investment vault in corporate cosplay. The stock trades at half of its book value, and investors are betting that someday, the Bajaj family will unlock NAV via a merger, buyback, or listing shuffle.
Until then?
Expect:
– Consistent dividends
– Almost zero growth
– Very low capital allocation risk
– And possibly… decades of quiet compounding
Verdict: Maharashtra Scooters is India’s most elegant parked capital. It just needs a driver.
Metadata
– Written by EduInvesting Team | 15 July 2025
– Tags: Maharashtra Scooters, Bajaj Group, Holding Company, Investment Company, NAV Discount, Value Investing India
