New Delhi, Jan 19 (IANS): The Indian Railway Finance Corporation's (IRFC) market capitalisation crossed Rs 2 lakh crore on Friday, surpassing the market capitalisation of Mahindra and Mahindra and Bajaj Auto.

IRFC is now valued at Rs 2.08 lakh crore.

It had earlier surpassed Tata Steel in market capitalisation. IRFC is up 8.8 per cent on Friday.

Railway stocks jumped up to 15 per cent on BSE on Friday led by Rail Vikas Nigam Limited (RVNL).

RVNL is up 15.47 per cent at Rs 281.40. IRCON is up 8.85 per cent at Rs 222.10.

IRFC is up 8.84 per cent at Rs 159.20. RITES is up 7.3 per cent at Rs 558.35. Railtel is up 7.1 per cent at Rs 389. IRCTC is up 5.2 per cent at Rs 975.

According to a report by HDFC Securities, RVNL is a project executing agency working for and on behalf of Ministry of Railways which is likely to play a key role in the development of railway infrastructure in India. It has a strong order book visibility.

RVNL has diversified into non-railway projects and over the past 2 years it has won orders worth Rs 32,000 crore through competitive bidding. It has also forayed into other geographies and is executing a project in Maldives and signed a MoU with Kyrgyzstan.

The proportion of orders won through competitive bidding has been increasing, thereby reducing its dependence on Ministry of Railways nomination.

RVNL follows an asset light business model, which helps keep its fixed asset part lower, helping it to keep its balance sheet stress free, and resulting in lower inventory days.

It has also commenced consultancy services which could lead to margin expansion, HDFC Securities said.

Its orderbook of Rs 67,000 crore at the end of Q2FY24 gives a visibility of three years. The company has a robust balance sheet and strong operating cash flows, the report said.

(Sanjeev Sharma can be reached at Sanjeev.s@ians.in)